Ighodalo, Okpebholo in tight race as Edo election results pour in

The governorship candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Asue Ighodalo, and the All Progressives Congress (APC), Monday Okpebholo, are locked in a close contest as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) continues to upload the results from Saturday’s election in Edo State.

IDOMA VOICE reports that  INEC has so far uploaded 97% of the election results on its Results Viewing Portal. Punch’s preliminary analysis of the uploaded data reveals that Okpebholo is leading in the Edo North Senatorial District, while Ighodalo holds the advantage in the Edo South Senatorial District.

Edo State consists of 18 Local Government Areas (LGAs), divided into three senatorial districts: Edo North, Edo South, and Edo Central. Historically, Edo North has been an APC stronghold, while the PDP has maintained dominance in Edo Central and Edo South. However, in the last senatorial election, an APC candidate won in Edo Central, adding unpredictability to the current race.

At Ewohimi, Unit 11, Ward 1 in Esan South-East LGA, where Ighodalo voted, he secured 200 votes, while Okpebholo received 45 votes. Conversely, Okpebholo prevailed in his own polling unit—Unit 03, Ward 1, Uwessan in Esan Central LGA—where he garnered 102 votes compared to just 1 vote each for Ighodalo and the Labour Party (LP) candidate, Akpata.

In Etsako West LGA’s Iyamho, where APC leader Adams Oshiomhole cast his ballot, the APC won with 403 votes, while the PDP and ADC each received just 1 vote. In Oredo LGA, at the polling unit where Governor Obaseki voted, the PDP secured 127 votes, followed by APC with 35 and LP with 11 votes.

Labour Party’s Akpata lost in his own polling unit in Ward 6 of Oredo LGA, where he managed only 2 votes, as the PDP polled 41 votes and APC received 19.

As of late Saturday, the results uploaded to INEC’s IReV platform showed a tight contest between the two main candidates. In Igueben LGA, across 43 polling units in Wards 1, 2, 4, and 6, Ighodalo led with 2,778 votes, while Okpebholo garnered 2,189 votes. In Ovia North-East LGA, Okpebholo led with 1,824 votes from three wards, while Ighodalo trailed closely with 1,745 votes.

In Ikpoba/Okha LGA, Ighodalo took the lead, securing 3,412 votes from 60 polling units, compared to Okpebholo’s 1,232 votes. In Oredo LGA’s two wards, Ighodalo led with 879 votes, while Okpebholo followed with 538 votes.

Okpebholo gained an edge in Uhunmwode LGA, polling 2,574 votes to Ighodalo’s 2,172 from 44 polling units. In Esan Central LGA, Okpebholo led with 8,132 votes, while Ighodalo trailed with 6,902 votes from 103 polling units.

In Owan West LGA, Okpebholo secured 2,493 votes against Ighodalo’s 1,979 votes from 24 polling units. In Ovia South West LGA, Okpebholo narrowly led with 972 votes to Ighodalo’s 871 from 17 polling units.

In Etsako East LGA, Okpebholo maintained a commanding lead with 2,421 votes from 13 polling units, while Ighodalo garnered 968 votes. Okpebholo also led in Esan West LGA, securing 4,105 votes, while Ighodalo received 3,264 votes, and Akpata trailed with 41 votes.

The race remains highly competitive in Owan West LGA, where Ighodalo leads with 26,870 votes from 151 polling units, while Okpebholo trails with 11,211 votes, and Akpata garnered 184 votes. In Egor LGA, across five polling units, Ighodalo leads with 385 votes, while Okpebholo has 313 votes.

As of 11 p.m. on Saturday, the final collation of results had not yet begun at INEC’s collation center in Benin City.