The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Sunday declared Senator Monday Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC) the winner of the closely contested Edo State governorship election held on Saturday, September 21, 2024.
The APC candidate garnered a total of 291,667 votes, defeating his nearest rival, Asue Ighodalo of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who polled 247,274 votes. Labour Party’s candidate, Olumide Akpata, finished a distant third, securing only 22,763 votes.
Okpebholo was declared after he secured wins in 11 out of Edo’s 18 local government areas. Ighodalo, the PDP candidate, managed to claim the remaining seven local governments. Meanwhile, Akpata of the Labour Party, a former Nigerian Bar Association President, lost in all local government areas, including his home base, Oredo.
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According to INEC, Okpebholo’s decisive victories were recorded in key local governments such as Esan West, Owan West, Akoko Edo, Egor, Esan Central, Ovia South West, Orhionmwon, Owan East, Etsako East, Oredo, and Etsako West. On the other hand, Ighodalo managed to take Ovia North East, Ovia South West, Uhunmwode, Igueben, Esan North East, and Esan South East.
In Igueben, a stronghold for Ighodalo, the PDP secured 8,470 votes, significantly outpacing APC’s 5,907. But Okpebholo made up for it with major wins in local government areas such as Akoko Edo, where he racked up an impressive 34,847 votes compared to Ighodalo’s 15,865.
The Labour Party candidate, Akpata, who initially had been seen as a potential wildcard in the race, struggled to make an impact across the state. His strongest performance came in Oredo, where he polled 5,389 votes, but it was far from enough to challenge the two frontrunners.
Allegations of Rigging
However, the election was mired in controversy, with accusations of electoral malpractice and rigging in favor of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
Ighodalo voiced strong discontent with the election’s proceedings, describing the exercise as riddled with irregularities. At a press conference organized by the Edo PDP National Campaign Council, Ighodalo expressed concerns over INEC’s handling of the process, citing alleged manipulations and discrepancies. One of the key issues raised by him was in the Ikpoba/Okha Ologbo area, where accredited voter numbers were recorded as zero, despite results being announced in those units.
One of the most glaring instances that have fueled these accusations involved a viral result sheet from Osholo Primary School Polling Unit, Weppa, in Etsako East Local Government Area, presided by Josephine Obazuwa. According to the result sheet, the APC was recorded as having garnered 352 votes in the polling unit, but only 213 voters were accredited to cast their ballots.
The evidence of inflated vote counts has ignited outrage among opposition parties, civil society groups, and voters, who are now questioning the integrity of the entire election. The incident has added to a growing list of similar complaints from past elections, where the APC has been accused of using its incumbency advantage to manipulate the outcome. Critics argue that this latest controversy is yet another example of the ruling party’s alleged interference in democratic processes, as seen in other states where it has secured victory under questionable circumstances.
Observers and political analysts have also raised alarms over the recurring pattern of alleged rigging by the APC. In several elections held since the party came to power in 2015, there have been accusations of vote tampering, voter suppression, and the manipulation of election results to favor the ruling party.
The Osholo Primary School incident is not an isolated case. During the collation of results, the PDP and its supporters cited several polling units where votes cast exceeded the number of accredited voters. In the build-up to the election, concerns about potential electoral malpractice were already rife, and the release of such irregular results seems to have confirmed those fears for many.
Governor Ahmadu Fintiri of Adamawa State, who led the PDP campaign, also supported these claims, noting that the integrity of the election had been compromised in certain polling units. Both Fintiri and Ighodalo warned that the election could set a dangerous precedent for Nigerian democracy if left unaddressed, potentially marking it as one of the most problematic elections in the country’s history.
The concerns about the Edo governorship election reflect a broader fear that Nigeria’s democracy is becoming increasingly vulnerable to electoral fraud, with the APC allegedly employing sophisticated tactics to maintain its grip on power.
Meanwhile, the APC’s Okpebholo, celebrated his victory, thanking Edo State voters for their support. He acknowledged the close contest but remained confident that the electoral process was fair and transparent.
However, the allegations from the PDP have cast a shadow over the results, raising the possibility of legal challenges in the coming days. While Okpebholo and the APC move forward with plans for governance, the PDP and Ighodalo are expected to contest the results.
The result has once again, beamed the spotlight on INEC and its handling of elections in the country, where the courts eventually decide the winners.