Supporters of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Edo State staged a protest on Wednesday at the office of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Benin City, calling for the reversal of the recently announced governorship election results.
The demonstrators, carrying placards and waving PDP insignia, urged INEC to overturn the outcome of the September 21, 2024, election.
They claimed that their candidate, Asue Ighodalo, was the rightful winner, not Monday Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who was declared victorious by INEC.
INEC had announced Okpebholo as the winner after he secured 291,667 votes, defeating Ighodalo with 247,274 votes. Labour Party’s Olumide Akpata finished a distant third with 22,763 votes. Despite 14 other candidates contesting, none posed a significant challenge to the leading trio.
Both Ighodalo and Akpata have expressed dissatisfaction with the results, accusing the APC of engaging in vote buying.
Ighodalo, in particular, has vowed to challenge the outcome, insisting that the will of the people was not reflected in the declared result. The APC, however, has dismissed the allegations.
