Ondo State Governor, Mr. Lucky Ayedatiwa, of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has been declared the winner of the 2024 governorship election, securing a sweeping victory across all 18 Local Government Areas (LGAs) in the state. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) officially returned Ayedatiwa as governor-elect on Sunday, November 17, 2024, after the final results were announced.
In a statement at the State Collation Centre in Akure, the State Returning Officer, Professor Olayemi Akinwumi, confirmed that Ayedatiwa had garnered a total of 366,781 votes, defeating his closest rival, Agboola Ajayi of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who secured 117,845 votes. Ayedatiwa’s victory margin was over 200,000 votes.
“I, Professor Olayemi Durotimi Akinwunmi, hereby certify that I am the Returning Officer for the 2024 Ondo State governorship election held on the 16th November, 2024. That Ayedatiwa Lucky Orimisan of the APC, having satisfied the requirements of the law, is hereby declared the winner and governor-elect,” Professor Akinwumi declared.
**Final Results and LG Breakdown**
The final election results showed Ayedatiwa’s APC sweeping all 18 LGAs. The total valid votes cast stood at 497,077, with 11,886 rejected votes and 508,963 total votes cast. Below is the breakdown of the results from key LGAs:
- – Ifedore LGA: APC – 14,157, PDP – 5,897
- – Ondo East LGA: APC – 8,163, PDP – 2,843
- – Idanre LGA: APC – 9,114, PDP – 8,940
- – Akure South LGA: APC – 32,969, PDP – 17,926
- – Akoko South West LGA: APC – 29,700, PDP – 5,517
- – Okitipupa LGA: APC – 26,811, PDP – 10,233
- – Odigbo LGA: APC – 26,683, PDP – 9,348
- – Ilaje LGA: APC – 24,474, PDP – 3,632
- – Ese Odo LGA: APC – 14,511, PDP – 7,814
With his victory, will continue his tenure as the governor of Ondo State, having assumed office in December 2023 after the passing of Governor Rotimi Akeredolu.
PDP’s Rejection of Results
Despite the clear margin of victory, the PDP rejected the results, accusing the APC of engaging in widespread vote-buying, intimidation, and other tactics to manipulate the election. The party’s National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, strongly condemned the election process, stating:
“This election witnessed widespread election merchandising, monetization, and barefaced vote buying by the APC. This reprehensible practice threatens Nigeria’s democracy and must be addressed if our democratic system is to survive.”
He further demanded an investigation into the election, asserting that the process had not met the standards required for a free, fair, and credible poll. Ologunagba added:
“We call the attention of all Nigerians and the International Community to this reprehensible practice by the APC as widely witnessed in Ondo State and we demand that serious action be taken to stem such if Nigeria’s democracy must survive. In the meantime, the National Working Committee of the PDP will be having a more detailed review of the election outcome and take appropriate action in the defence of our democracy.”
PDP’s Allegations of Electoral Malpractices
The PDP also accused INEC of complicity in the alleged manipulation of the election results. Ologunagba argued that “the system is compromised,” and alleged that vote-buying was conducted openly and unchecked. He claimed that the delays in the collation process were deliberate and designed to skew the outcome of the election.
“The system is compromised and I have had a series of calls today. People are complaining about vote buying and the BVAS is not working,” Ologunagba said. “It is a very shameful exercise and I think Nigerians should just call on the chairman of the electoral commission Prof Mahmood Yakubu. If you cannot do the job, please just honourably resign. He should resign. This is embarrassing. It [election] is totally compromised.”
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INEC’s Defense of the Election
In response to the PDP’s allegations, the Chief Press Secretary to the INEC Chairman, Rotimi Oyekanmi, defended the integrity of the election, calling it one of the “best ever conducted” by the commission.
Oyekanmi noted that the election was meticulously planned, citing that 97 percent of the 3,933 polling units in the state opened by 8:30 AM, and 100 percent by 10:00 AM.
“The timetable and schedule of activities was released one year ahead, and 13 activities were listed. Each activity, from the beginning to the end was meticulously executed,” Oyekanmi said.
“Besides, the PDP was given the opportunity to nominate their polling units and collation agents, which they did. And in the just concluded election, INEC achieved two main feats: 97 percent of the 3933 polling units in the state were opened by 8.30am, while 100 percent were opened by 10am. This points to the meticulous planning and follow-up we did with transport providers, which worked excellently.”
Oyekanmi also defended the use of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), stating that the system was operational at over 98 percent of polling units.
By 7 PM on election day, 92 percent of the results had been uploaded to INEC’s Result Viewing portal. He dismissed claims of bias against the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), pointing out that there was no evidence to support the PDP’s allegations.
APC’s Response
The APC dismissed the PDP’s claims as “baseless.” Bala Ibrahim, the APC’s National Publicity Director, criticized the PDP for its constant tendency to blame the APC for any election loss. He emphasized that the clear margin of Ayedatiwa’s victory—over 200,000 votes—was proof of the APC’s widespread support in the state. Ibrahim stated:
“If there’s a natural disaster in Nigeria, the PDP will blame it on the APC. They fail to understand that Nigerians are more conscious of their votes now and have rejected the PDP’s 16 years of mismanagement. Why is it that the PDP only praises INEC when they win?”
Labour Party’s Reaction
In addition to the PDP’s objections, the Labour Party’s candidate, Ayodele Olorunfemi, expressed frustration over his party’s poor performance in the election. Olorunfemi attributed his failure to internal conflicts within the Labour Party, as well as the influence of former Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi. He claimed that party leaders, including former Nigeria Labour Congress president Abduwaheed Omar, sabotaged his campaign.
Olorunfemi also said that his reinstatement on the ballot just days before the election, following a Court of Appeal ruling, left him with insufficient time to effectively campaign. He further accused Obi’s ally, Olusola Ebiseni, of forging documents to undermine his candidacy.
