By NEWSCOUNT Desk

Governor Ademola Adeleke of the Accord Party has taken a commanding lead in the Osun State governorship election, polling 511,067 votes against 444,815 recorded by the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, as results from all 30 local government areas emerge from the collation process.

The figures give Adeleke a lead of 66,252 votes over his closest challenger, with the incumbent also winning 19 of the state’s 30 local government areas, while Oyebamiji secured 11.

The results were announced during the collation exercise at the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) State Collation Centre in Osogbo, following Saturday’s governorship election.

The emerging figures indicate a largely two horse race between Adeleke and Oyebamiji, with the African Democratic Congress (ADC) candidate, Najeem Salaam, trailing the two leading contenders with 17,180 votes in the collated figures.

Adeleke recorded substantial victories in several local government areas, including Osogbo, Ede North, Ede South, Ife East, Ife Central, Iwo, Oriade, Odo-Otin, Egbedore, Ejigbo and Ifelodun.

In Osogbo, the governor polled 36,480 votes against Oyebamiji’s 30,474, while in Ede North he secured 35,427 votes against 10,283 for the APC candidate.

Adeleke also recorded a wide margin in Ede South, where he scored 26,188 votes against Oyebamiji’s 6,219. In Ife East, he polled 27,201 votes against 18,600, while in Iwo he secured 27,085 votes against 19,660.

The governor won Ife Central with 21,171 votes against Oyebamiji’s 15,913, while he recorded 21,343 votes against 14,863 in Oriade. In Odo-Otin, Adeleke polled 18,003 votes against 15,435, while in Egbedore he secured 19,278 votes against 11,194.

Oyebamiji, however, recorded strong performances in several local government areas, particularly in parts of the state where he established sizeable margins.

The APC candidate’s strongest showing was in Irewole, where he polled 29,972 votes against Adeleke’s 10,934, giving him a margin of 19,038 votes.

Oyebamiji also won Boripe with 19,963 votes against Adeleke’s 12,448 and Ilesa East with 16,208 votes against the governor’s 12,280. He further secured victories in Irepodun, Obokun, Atakumosa West, Atakumosa East, Isokan, Ola-Oluwa, Ife South and Olorunda.

In Olorunda, Oyebamiji polled 24,671 votes against Adeleke’s 23,514, while in Isokan he narrowly defeated the governor by 298 votes, scoring 14,063 against 13,765.

Some of the contests were closely fought. In Boluwaduro, Adeleke led Oyebamiji by just 68 votes, polling 7,118 against 7,050. In Ola-Oluwa, Oyebamiji won by 719 votes after scoring 10,782 against Adeleke’s 10,063.

The results from the 30 local government areas have placed Adeleke firmly ahead of Oyebamiji in the overall tally, with the incumbent’s 66,252-vote advantage putting him in a strong position ahead of the final declaration.

There have, however, been varying figures in some early reports concerning the number of local government areas won by the two leading candidates. While some reports initially gave a 20-10 split, the detailed results from the 30 local government areas indicate a 19-11 split in favour of Adeleke, and that figure is reflected in this report.

The election was not without reported challenges. There were reports of delays in the arrival of electoral officials, alleged vote buying, technical difficulties involving the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), political interference and isolated incidents of violence in some parts of the state.

Despite the reported challenges, observers described the election as largely peaceful, although concerns were raised over the conduct of some political actors and operational shortcomings recorded in certain polling units.

Attention has now shifted to the completion of the formal collation process and the declaration by INEC’s Returning Officer.

Until that declaration is made, Adeleke’s 511,067 votes against Oyebamiji’s 444,815 remain the figures emerging from the collation of results, rather than a formal declaration of victory.

If the figures are upheld and Adeleke is declared winner, the result would secure another term for the incumbent governor following his victory in the 2022 Osun governorship election.