JUST IN: Biodun Oyebanji re-elected Ekiti governor, wins all 16 LGAs

Governor Biodun Oyebanji of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has been re-elected as Governor of Ekiti State after emerging victorious in Saturday’s governorship election.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) formally declared Oyebanji winner of the poll on Sunday in Ado-Ekiti after he secured a commanding lead over other candidates across the state’s 16 local government areas.

According to the final results announced by INEC, Oyebanji polled a total of 319,224 votes to defeat his closest rival, Wole Oluyede of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who garnered 40,543 votes. The candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Oluwadare Bejide, came third with 12,872 votes.

The APC candidate recorded victories in all 16 local government areas, completing a clean sweep across both urban and rural voting blocs in the state.

INEC’s State Collation Officer, who supervised the final collation of results, declared Oyebanji winner after confirming that he met all constitutional requirements for election into the office of governor.

She disclosed that out of the 382,109 votes cast, a total of 6,332 votes were rejected, while 384,940 voters were accredited from the state’s 988,251 registered voters.

Other parties recorded the following votes: ADC – 12,872, ADP – 1,269, A – 564, AA – 126, AAC – 195, APM – 59, APP – 61, LP – 276, NNPP – 35, PRP – 163, SDP – 179, YPP – 98 and ZLP – 113.

With the victory, Oyebanji has secured another four years in office and strengthened the APC’s grip on Ekiti State.

The outcome also marks another significant chapter in Ekiti’s political history, as the governor joins the list of leaders who have successfully secured a second term in the state’s democratic journey.