Historic Ekiti landslide fuels APC’s bid for southwest hegemony

Nigeria’s ruling party is tightening its grip on the nation’s economically viable southwest after a historic landslide in Ekiti State shattered a 27-year political jinx.

The unprecedented re-election of Governor Biodun Oyebanji not only establishes a new benchmark for incumbency in the region but also provides the All Progressives Congress with an aggressive operational launchpad to clear out remaining opposition strongholds.

The result delivers an immediate psychological and operational tailwind to the APC as it pivots toward an August 15 showdown in neighbouring Osun State, a critical political bellwether currently controlled by the opposition.

Official data released Sunday morning by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) underscored the scale of the opposition’s collapse. Oyebanji secured 319,224 votes, comfortably routing his closest rival, Wole Oluyede of the Peoples Democratic Party, who managed only 40,543 votes.

The remaining opposition led from the rear. Dare Bejide of the African Democratic Congress finished a distant third with 12,872 votes, while Opeyemi Falegan, the Accord Party candidate, secured 564 votes.

Announcing the result, Adenike Oladiji, the state returning officer and Vice-Chancellor of the Federal University of Technology, Akure, declared Oyebanji duly elected after scoring the highest number of votes cast and satisfying the requirements of the law.

She said: “I, Adenike Oladiji, hereby certify that I am the returning officer for the Ekiti State governorship election held on June 20, 2026. That Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji of the APC, having satisfied the requirements of the law and scored the highest number of votes, is hereby declared the winner and returned elected.”

Of the nearly 988,252 registered voters in the state, INEC accredited 384,940, ultimately recording 375,777 valid ballots.

The overwhelming margin of victory masked significant operational friction on the ground. The electoral commission’s flagship technology, the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System, suffered widespread technical malfunctions that slowed voter processing to a low.

Prominent political figures, including former presidential aide Babafemi Ojudu, reported severe biometric delays, noting it took technicians nearly thirty minutes to clear a single voter profile.

“There is clearly a problem with the system. The BVAS is malfunctioning. I don’t know what is happening in other polling units, but I am reporting directly from my polling unit,” Ojudu said.

He added that he was the only voter who had successfully voted at the unit as of about 9 a.m.

Also during the election, Oluyede, the PDP candidate, complained about the slow pace of accreditation at his polling unit in Ikere-Ekiti, alleging that only a few voters had been accredited several hours after the commencement of voting.

Elsewhere, in the opposition stronghold of Afao-Ekiti, administrative lapses left voters unable to verify their registration status before polling commenced.

One of the voters, Sunday Wale, said residents were unable to verify their names before accreditation began.

“INEC people are on the ground with materials, but they have yet to paste our names on the wall. We need to check for our names to know our status,” he said.

Despite these logistical bottlenecks, the APC’s institutional machinery successfully neutralised the friction, demonstrating an organisational resilience that party strategists are already planning to export.

The political ripple effects immediately registered in Osun State, where Governor Ademola Adeleke of the Accord Party faces a gruelling re-election bid in less than two months. APC insiders view the Ekiti result as clear evidence of an electoral trend favouring structural continuity and progressive alignment.

Olatunbosun Oyintiloye, an APC chieftain based in Osogbo, characterised the Ekiti sweep as more than a localised triumph, framing it as an institutional proof-of-concept that will re-energise the party’s base to unseat the opposition administration in Osun.

“The victory in Ekiti is more than an electoral success; it is a clear indication that the APC remains the preferred platform for many Nigerians. We believe Osun voters will make the same choice on August 15.

“The Ekiti election has provided renewed energy and inspiration for our members and supporters. It has shown that the people still believe in the APC and its vision for development,” he said while addressing journalists on Sunday.

To achieve that regional consolidation, the APC is relying on a unified command structure led by national chairman Nentawe Yilwatda and bolstered by influential regional powerbrokers like Adegboyega Oyetola, the minister of Marine and Blue Economy.

Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele noted that Oyebanji’s historic win stemmed from an ability to co-opt and unite disparate political factions across party lines—a governance blueprint the APC intends to deploy as it positions its Osun flagbearer, Asiwaju Oyebamiji (AMBO), to reclaim the state and cement the party’s grip on the Southwest.