Adeleke Wins Second Term As CODER Commends INEC, Security Agencies, And Osun Voters On Conduct Of 2026 Governorship Election
OSOGBO, Nigeria — Incumbent Governor Ademola Adeleke has secured a second term in office after being declared the winner of Saturday’s highly contested Osun State Governorship Election.
The Returning Officer, Professor Joshua Ogunwole, announced the final results early Sunday morning, confirming that Adeleke, contesting under the banner of the Accord Party, polled 511,067 votes to defeat his closest rival, Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who scored 444,815 votes.
Election Body and Security Praised
Following the official declaration, the Coalition of Democrats for Electoral Reform (CODER)in a statement issued by Michael Popoola Ajayi and Alhassan Adamu on Monday commending the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for demonstrating marked improvements in its operational logistics.
The pro-democracy group highlighted the prompt deployment of electoral materials and the efficient use of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and the INEC Results Viewing (IReV) portal, which they noted contributed significantly to public transparency.
CODER also praised the Nigeria Police Force and partner security agencies for maintaining a peaceful environment, effectively suppressing the pre-election anxieties and potential for violence that had gripped the state in the days leading up to the poll.
Observers Note Successes and Technical Gaps
The election saw a robust voter turnout, crossing the 50 per cent threshold of collected Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs). Civic groups praised the electorate for their peaceful and resilient conduct at the polls.
However, external observation reports from data analysts, including Dataphyte Insight, added nuance to the operational success.
While tracking data supported CODER’s positive assessment of voter peace, technical logs revealed that 99 polling unit results were still outstanding on the public IReV portal at the time the final winner was declared. Isolated cases of voter inducement and localized BVAS hardware delays were also flagged as areas needing urgent reform.
A Historic Political Realignment
Governor Adeleke’s victory marks a historic shift in Nigeria’s political landscape. It represents the first time the Accord Party has captured a governorship seat since its establishment two decades ago.
The political realignment followed Adeleke’s high-profile defection from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) earlier this year, altering traditional voting patterns across the state.
According to the final tally, Adeleke secured majorities in 19 out of the 30 Local Government Areas, giving him a definitive 66,252-vote margin of victory to retain the state leadership.
