Governor Biodun Oyebanji has secured a sweeping re-election victory in Ekiti State, extending the All Progressives Congress’ (APC) grip on power with one of the most commanding performances in the state’s electoral history.
Results announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) showed Oyebanji overwhelmingly defeated his challengers across the state’s 16 local government areas, polling 319,224 votes to earn another four-year mandate.
His closest rival, Olumayokun Oluyede of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), secured 40,533 votes, while Dare Bejide of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) garnered 12,872 votes.
Declaring the result in the early hours of Sunday, Returning Officer Adenike Oladiji said the APC candidate had met all constitutional requirements and was duly returned elected.
The outcome reflected the governor’s dominance across the state, with the APC emerging victorious in every local government area and posting impressive margins in major voting centres.
In what many observers described as one of the election’s biggest surprises, PDP candidate Oluyede was defeated in Efon Local Government Area, his home base. The APC secured 8,742 votes in the council, while the PDP managed 2,051 votes.
From the state capital, Ado-Ekiti, to communities across the North and South Senatorial Districts, the election results painted a picture of broad voter support for the incumbent governor.
INEC figures showed that 384,940 voters were accredited from a register of 988,251 eligible voters. Of the 382,109 ballots cast, 375,777 were declared valid.
The governor recorded some of his strongest performances in Ado, Ekiti West, Irepodun/Ifelodun, Ikole and Ijero local government areas, where APC supporters turned out in large numbers to back his re-election bid.
The emphatic victory is expected to strengthen Oyebanji’s political influence within Ekiti and the APC, while leaving opposition parties with the difficult task of rebuilding after a contest that delivered a clear and decisive verdict from the electorate.
Beyond the numbers, the election result signals strong public endorsement of the governor’s first-term stewardship and gives him renewed political capital to pursue his administration’s development agenda over the next four years.