[3] Incumbent Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri (PDP) was re-elected by a 3.75% margin over first runner-up and APC nominee — Senator Aishatu Dahiru Ahmed.

The state also has to contend with an underdeveloped yet vital agricultural sector and low education rates along with continued security challenges from Boko Haram and ISWAP to sustained conflict between herders and farmers.

During Fintiri's term, his administration stated focuses included increased security, ethnic and religious harmony, and water resource management.

In terms of his performance, Fintiri was commended for civil service reform while being criticized for having few accomplishments of his own and disregarding FAAN airport health protocols in July 2020.

[35][8] Although Ribadu originally announced his intention to take the case to the Supreme Court, he withdrew the lawsuit in early December "for the larger good of the party.

[6] About a month after the primary, Kaletapwa Farauta—the Vice-Chancellor of Adamawa State University and former Commissioner of Education from Numan—was picked as Fintiri's running mate instead of incumbent Deputy Governor Crowther Seth.

[53] In the months after the primaries, pundits noted the potential boost that Fintiri could receive due to Adamawa-native Atiku Abubakar's nomination to be the PDP presidential nominee; another issue for Ahmed was due to the APC presidential ticket—APC nominee Bola Tinubu's selection of Kashim Shettima created a Muslim-Muslim ticket, violating an unwritten convention against same religion tickets—with pundits noting the religious diversity of Adamawa and the opposition forming against the APC among northern Christians.

[58] Nonetheless, observers also noted Ahmed's strong support base among women voters and historic candidacy to become the first elected woman governor.

Analysts claimed that Ahmed's popularity with women may have led Fintiri to drop incumbent Deputy Governor Crowther Seth as his running mate for Kaletapwa Farauta in order to achieve a gender balanced ticket.

Ahmed focused on women voters at rallies while Fintiri received the endorsement of the influential Church of the Brethren in Nigeria.

Although the result was unsurprising as Adamawa is in Abubakar's home state and projections had favored him, the totals led to increased attention on Fintiri's chances in the gubernatorial race with the EiE-SBM forecast projecting Fintiri to win based on "the outcome of the presidential elections" while a Premium Times article noted the potential effect of ethnic dynamics.

[68] Observers also reiterated the significance of Ahmed's historic candidacy for women in the wake of the federal elections' backslide in female representation, especially considering allegations that the PDP had worked with misogynistic clerics in an attempt to discredit the possibility of a woman becoming governor.

[69][67] On 26 February 2022, the Independent National Electoral Commission released the timetable, setting out key dates and deadlines for the election.