The ongoing upload of results from the Osun State governorship election to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Results Viewing Portal, IReV, has reached 87.48 per cent, even as some prominent political leaders in the state did not cast their ballots during Saturday’s election.
A check by Standard Times at exactly 8:48 p.m. showed that INEC had uploaded more than 87 per cent of the results from polling units across the state, as the commission continued the electronic transmission of results and the physical collation process.
Among the prominent political figures whose voting participation attracted attention were former governors Olagunsoye Oyinlola, Rauf Aregbesola and Bisi Akande, as well as former Deputy Governor Iyiola Omisore.
While some of the political heavyweights did not personally cast their ballots, results from their respective polling units showed varying fortunes for the major parties.
At the polling unit associated with former Osun Deputy Governor, Senator Iyiola Omisore, the Accord Party recorded a victory. Results uploaded to IReV showed Accord polling 131 votes at PU 003, Ife Ward 1, Moore, St. Gabriel Primary School, Ife East Local Government Area.
The APC scored 85 votes, while the African Democratic Congress (ADC) secured 10 votes, with other political parties recording marginal figures.
Accord also secured victory at the polling unit of former Governor Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola in Okuku, Odo-Otin Local Government Area, where it polled 125 votes, against 85 votes for the APC and five votes for the ADC.
At the polling unit of former Governor Rauf Aregbesola in Ilesa, however, the APC recorded a decisive victory. The APC governorship candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, secured 256 votes, while Accord candidate and incumbent Governor Ademola Adeleke polled 43 votes. The ADC’s Najeem Salaam received 13 votes.
Similarly, former Governor and founding interim National Chairman of the APC, Bisi Akande, recorded a victory for his party at Polling Unit 12, Ward 4, Atogbade area of Ila-Orangun, Ila Local Government Area. Oyebamiji polled 181 votes, defeating Adeleke, who scored 121 votes.
The results from the political leaders’ polling units highlight the mixed fortunes of the major parties as collation continues, with Accord gaining victories at the polling units associated with Oyinlola and Omisore, while APC prevailed at those linked to Aregbesola and Akande.
With 87.48 per cent of results already uploaded to IReV as of 8:53 p.m., attention has shifted to the remaining results and the official collation that will determine the winner of the keenly contested governorship election.
However, it was gathered that two candidates, Adesina Adeyemi-Doro of the All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, and Simon Adewale of the Allied Peoples Movement, APM, had announced their withdrawal from the election.
While Adeyemi-Doro endorsed the candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Bola Oyebamiji, Adewale declared support for Adeleke. However, both APGA and APM remain on the ballot.
