He began his career in the Civil Service where he rose through the ranks to become the Bauchi State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice.

He rose through the ranks to the position of Senior Parliamentary Counsel and Head of Legal Drafting Department of Bauchi State House of Assembly in 1983.

He became the Chairman of Nigerian Bar Association, Bauchi State Branch from 1996 to 1998 and was elected Deputy National Secretary of the Democratic People's Party in 1997.

In 2003, he was promoted to National Electoral Commissioner in charge of Legal Services and supervisor of Borno, Jigawa, and Yobe states.

In June 2013 Barrister Mohammed Abubakar was appointed a member of the National Judicial Council, NJC, and on 11 April 2015 he was the elected Governor of Bauchi State, Nigeria on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC).