The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has distanced itself from the Edo State governorship election results circulating on social media, stating that it has not yet received official results from any of the 18 local government areas (LGAs) in the state.
During an interview with Channels Television on Saturday, the state’s Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Anugbum Onuoha, clarified that the election results are still at the ward level and must first progress to the local government level before being forwarded to the state collation center.
“I cannot categorically tell you when we will announce the results in the state. As they come, we will announce,” Onuoha explained. “For now, no results have been received from any local government.”
The REC cautioned social media users who were prematurely posting “results,” emphasizing that this is not their role and that the commission has not officially declared any outcomes.
“I want to correct one thing: those who are publishing results, it is not their duty to announce results. INEC has not announced results. I am not even the returning officer for the state. The returning officer will announce the results. But I am surprised by what I see on social media. That is not the correct position of the commission. Nobody has the authority to do that. The law is clear on who can announce the results. So, they should desist,” he stated.
Meanwhile, the electoral body has uploaded over 90% of polling unit result sheets from Saturday’s governorship election to the commission’s Result Viewing Portal (IReV). Out of the 4,519 polling units in Edo State, results from 3,995 units had been uploaded as of 7:40 p.m. on Saturday.
On September 21, 2024, the people of Edo State, located in South-South Nigeria, went to the polls to elect a new governor to succeed the incumbent, Godwin Obaseki, whose eight-year tenure will end on November 12, 2024.
Edo is one of eight states where off-cycle governorship elections are held due to legal disputes and court rulings. The others include Anambra, Bayelsa, Ekiti, Imo, Kogi, Osun, and Ondo.
According to INEC, Edo State has 2,629,025 registered voters across 4,519 polling units. Of these, 2,249,780 voters (85.57%) hold Permanent Voters’ Cards (PVCs) and will decide Obaseki’s successor.
While 17 candidates are vying for the governorship, analysts have identified the contest as a three-horse race among Asue Ighodalo of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Monday Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC), and Olumide Akpata of the Labour Party (LP).