 In 2007, he was appointed as the Presidential Special Envoy to Somalia and Darfur by the Obasanjo administration after losing the bid from his party to contest the 2007 general governorship election.He continued to use his influence at the federal level to undermine his opponents especially the Kano State Government.Kwankwaso resigned his ministerial position to contest the election in 2007 but he lost because he had been indicted by a Government White Paper.