Governor Ademola Adeleke has taken an early lead in the Osun State governorship election as results from polling units across the state continue to emerge and the Independent National Electoral Commission proceeds with the collation process.
The early results have placed the Accord Party candidate ahead of his closest challenger, the All Progressives Congress candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, while the African Democratic Congress candidate, Najeem Salaam, is currently trailing the two leading contenders.
Results uploaded to INEC’s electronic results portal showed Adeleke recording strong performances in several local government areas, including Osogbo, Iwo, Ede South, Ife North, Ife East, Oriade and Irepodun...READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE .
In Iwo Local Government Area, Adeleke recorded 27,085 votes against Oyebamiji’s 19,660 votes. He also secured a significant advantage in Ede South, where he polled 26,188 votes while his APC opponent recorded 6,219 votes.
The governor also maintained strong performances in several polling areas in Ife North. In one set of results covering 19 of the 111 monitored polling units, Adeleke secured 2,043 votes compared with Oyebamiji’s 1,386 votes, while Salaam received 51 votes.
At Ipetumodu II Ward 7, Adeleke again led with 841 votes, while Oyebamiji scored 446 and Salaam obtained 21 votes. At Edunabon I Ward 2, where results from seven of the 11 polling units had been released, Adeleke recorded 638 votes against Oyebamiji’s 496, while Salaam polled 15 votes.
The early trend has also produced surprising results involving some of the state’s prominent political figures. Several well known politicians and political leaders failed to secure their respective polling units for the candidates they supported.
Former Osun State Governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola, who is supporting the APC candidate, lost his polling unit to Adeleke. At the polling unit where Oyinlola voted in Okuku, Adeleke secured 125 votes while Oyebamiji recorded 85 votes.
Former Osun Governor Rauf Aregbesola also lost his polling unit, although the APC candidate emerged ahead of the ADC candidate there. The APC secured 256 votes, while ADC recorded 13 votes and Accord obtained 43 votes.
Former APC National Secretary Iyiola Omisore equally lost his polling unit in Ife East Local Government Area to Adeleke. The governor secured 131 votes while Oyebamiji came second with 85 votes.
The results have added an unexpected dimension to the election because the performance of several political heavyweights at their own polling units has not necessarily reflected the outcome they were hoping for across the state.
However, the election was not without serious concerns. Reports from different parts of Osun indicated incidents of alleged vote buying, technical problems with the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System and isolated cases of violence and intimidation.
There were allegations that voters in some locations were offered large sums of money to influence their choices. Reports also emerged of cash being distributed at polling units, while some observers raised concerns about the involvement of political agents and, in some instances, security personnel.
Technical difficulties with BVAS were another major issue during the exercise. Some voters reportedly experienced delays because the machines failed to properly authenticate or capture their details. The situation affected some polling units and generated frustration among voters who had waited to exercise their franchise.
Election observers also reported delays in the arrival of electoral officials in some polling units, while isolated incidents of violence were recorded in parts of the state. Gunshots were reportedly heard at some locations, and there were allegations of attempts to disrupt voting and collation activities.
Despite these challenges, the collation of results has continued as attention shifts to the final figures that will determine who emerges victorious in the keenly contested election.
Adeleke’s early advantage has strengthened expectations among his supporters that the incumbent governor could secure another term, but the race remains officially undecided until INEC completes the collation and announces the final result.
The performance of Oyebamiji and other candidates in the remaining results will therefore be closely watched as the final outcome begins to take shape.
For now, Adeleke remains in front based on the provisional results available, while political observers and voters across Osun State await the conclusion of the official collation process.
