Presidential elections were held in Nigeria for the first time on 11 August 1979.

The result was a victory for Shehu Shagari, whose National Party of Nigeria had won the parliamentary elections in July.

However, at the time of the election, Nigeria had nineteen states, two-thirds of which in exact figures is 12.66.

Obafemi Awolowo claimed that the threshold should be rounded up to thirteen states, which Shagari had not met.

The Supreme Court of Nigeria ruled in favour of Shagari.