Governor Ademola Adeleke has been re-elected as governor of Osun State after defeating the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Munirudeen Oyebamiji, in the Saturday governorship election.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared Adeleke, who contested under the Accord Party, winner after he polled 511,067 votes.
Oyebamiji scored 444,815 votes, while the African Democratic Congress (ADC) candidate, Najeem Salaam, came third with 17,180 votes.
Adeleke won with a margin of 66,252 votes.
Speaking after his victory was declared, Adeleke dedicated his re-election to the people of Osun State, saying they rewarded his administration for its achievements.
He said the people recognised his efforts in infrastructure, education, agriculture and other sectors.
Adeleke described the victory as a “gesture of thank you” from the electorate and promised to repay their confidence by moving Osun from a civil-service state to a fully developed commercial state.
The governor also called for unity after the election, saying there was no victor or vanquished.
He said he expected Oyebamiji to call and congratulate him, adding that President Bola Tinubu had already congratulated him on the victory.
The election recorded 1,016,188 accredited voters from 2,354,028 registered voters.
Adeleke recorded his strongest results in Osogbo, Ede North and Ede South, while Oyebamiji performed strongly in Irewole and Olorunda.
The election was conducted amid concerns over political violence, vote-buying and alleged voter intimidation in some areas. There were also reports of harassment of journalists and disruptions at some polling units.
With his second-term mandate secured, Adeleke said his administration would focus on expanding infrastructure, boosting commerce and strengthening social services across the state.
