INEC has proclaimed Ondo governor Rotimi Akeredolu (APC) winner of the gubernatorial election held on Saturday. 

Mr. Akeredolu won 51 percent of votes to defeat his main opponent Eyitayo Jegede (PDP). 

APC’s Mr. Akeredolu scored 292,830 votes and PDP’s Mr. Jegede scored 195,791. Mr. Akeredolu’s former deputy governor Agboola Ajayi, who defected twice and finally ran with the Zenith Labour Party, came third with 69,127 votes. 

A PDP representative said at the announcement conference that violence and vote-buying were rife during the election.

An observer group, Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room (Situation Room), described the election as a ‘marked improvement’ on the recent gubernatorial election in Edo, although the group found prevalent vote-buying as in the Edo case. 

YIAGA observers also reported vote-buying with security officers complicit in the acts. 

Situation Room said, ‘The conduct of the Ondo state governorship election appears to have built on the gains of the recently conducted Edo state governorship election…Again, INEC’s processes improved and [were] mostly hitch-free.’

Voter turnout was low this time as in Edo, continuing a concerning trend of voter apathy around the country. 

Situation Room also praised INEC’s innovation to upload results online on election day. The group said all results from 11 of 18 local government areas were online in about eight hours after voting ended.

APC has strengthened its control in the southwest with this victory. The party currently runs five of the six states in the region.