By Priye Briggs
Governor Ademola Adeleke has been returned as Osun State governor, with the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, formally declaring him winner of Saturday’s governorship election after a fiercely contested campaign season.
The declaration was made in the early hours of Sunday at the INEC Collation Centre in Osogbo by the State Returning Officer, Professor Joshua Ogunwole.
According to the final results announced, Governor Adeleke polled 511,067 votes to defeat 14 other candidates and clinch another four-year term to lead the “State of the Living Spring.”
The result caps weeks of rallies, town-hall meetings and door-to-door mobilisation across Osun’s 30 local government areas. With 2.3 million registered voters and an expected turnout of about 1.9 million, the election was closely watched as a barometer of voter sentiment on welfare programmes, infrastructure, and cost-of-living issues.
Adeleke’s victory margin puts him ahead in a majority of the LGAs, reflecting strong support in his Osun West base as well as significant gains in Osogbo, Ilesa and parts of Osun Central.
INEC officials said accreditation and voting commenced at 8:30 a.m. on Saturday and proceeded in most areas with the use of BVAS for voter accreditation and real-time uploads to the IReV portal. A few isolated incidents, including the disruption in Ejigbo, were reported but did not affect the overall conduct, according to observers.
The declaration gives Adeleke, who contested on the platform of the Accord Party, a renewed mandate to continue his administration’s focus on workers’ welfare, education, health and rural infrastructure.
Political analysts say the outcome also signals the strength of incumbency and grassroots mobilisation in Osun politics, especially amid a 15-candidate field that made the race unpredictable up until collation.
With results now collated and announced, attention will shift to governance priorities for the next term and to post-election reconciliation efforts across party lines.
INEC is expected to issue Certificates of Return to the governor-elect and deputy governor-elect in the coming days.