The Edo State governorship election, held on September 21, 2024, saw intense competition between the PDP's Asue Ighodalo, APC's Monday Okpebholo, and LP's Olumide Akpata. Tensions rose as results trickled in, with both PDP and APC winning in various local government areas, while INEC faced accusations of vote manipulation
The Edo State governorship election took place on September 21, 2024, across 4,519 polling units in all 18 local government areas (LGAs). Voters turned out to choose a successor to Governor Godwin Obaseki, with 17 political parties fielding candidates.
The major contenders included Asue Ighodalo of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Monday Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC), and Olumide Akpata from the Labour Party (LP).
As results trickled in, both the PDP and APC showed strong performances in several LGAs. For instance, the APC won Akoko-Edo with 34,847 votes, while the PDP secured Esan North-East with 12,522 votes. The Labour Party, trailing behind, garnered minimal support, such as 2,239 votes in Akoko-Edo.
Amid the collation, tension mounted as the PDP candidate, Ighodalo, accused the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of vote manipulation in his strongholds, describing the election as potentially the "worst" in the country's history. Meanwhile, security was beefed up at INEC’s collation center in Benin City, and police arrested suspected political thugs during the voting process.
By Sunday, INEC had uploaded over 98% of the results on its portal, while live updates continued, showing tight competition between the PDP and APC in several LGAs. The final results from remaining LGAs are expected to determine the election's outcome.
