Adeleke wins Osun governorship election. The Independent National Electoral Commission confirmed the result on Sunday and handed the Accord Party candidate a second term as governor.
Adeleke polled 511,067 votes to defeat his closest rival, Bola Oyebamiji of the All Progressives Congress. Oyebamiji scored 444,815 votes, trailing Adeleke by more than 66,000 votes. Meanwhile, Najeem Salaam of the African Democratic Congress finished third, though INEC did not disclose his exact vote count.
The State Returning Officer, Prof Joshua Ogunwole, announced the outcome at about 7:24 am on Sunday. Ogunwole serves as Vice Chancellor of the Federal University, Oye Ekiti. He led the collation process across all 30 local government areas in Osun State.
Party agents signed the results after collation. Ogunwole then confirmed that Adeleke met all legal requirements and declared him winner and returned governor. The election held on Saturday, and voters turned out across the state despite security concerns in some areas.
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Adeleke won 19 of the 30 local government areas. These included Ede North, Ede South, Ejigbo, Iwo, Egbedore, Ife North, Ife East, Ife Central, Oriade, Ifelodun, Orolu, Ayedaade, Ayedire, Odo Otin, Boluwaduro, Ilesa West, Ifedayo, Osogbo and Atakumosa.
Oyebamiji, however, secured the remaining 11 local government areas. He won in Irewole, Isokan, Olorunda, Atakumosa East, Atakumosa West, Ilesa East, Boripe, Irepodun and Obokun. As a result, the APC posted a strong showing in the state’s eastern axis.
INEC recorded 1,010,684 accredited voters and counted 1,005,800 total votes cast. Officials validated 985,079 votes and rejected 207 ballots for various irregularities.
Beyond the top three parties, other contestants recorded low vote counts. For instance, the African Action Congress polled 2,308 votes, while the African Democratic Congress secured 17,180 votes. The Zenith Labour Party managed 2,482 votes, and several smaller parties recorded totals below 1,000 votes each.
What the win means for Osun politics
Adeleke’s victory extends his tenure as governor and strengthens the Accord Party’s grip on Osun State. The result also deals a setback to APC’s ambitions in the state, despite Oyebamiji’s strong performance in several local government areas.
INEC has not yet announced a date for the formal inauguration. However, election observers expect Adeleke to be sworn in for his new term in the coming weeks, following standard post-election procedures.
