THE Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared the results of governorship elections in Yobe, Jigawa and Katsina states.
The announcement was made by the INEC returning officers in each state after collating the results from polling units.
In Yobe State, Governor Mala Buni of the All Progressives Congress (APC) was declared the winner of the election.
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According to the INEC returning officer, Buni polled 317,113 votes to defeat his closest opponent, Sherif Abdullahi of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who scored 124,259 votes. Garba Umar of the New Nigerian Peoples Party (NNPP) came a distant third with 14,246 votes, while Arabi Mohammed of the Action Alliance (AA) polled 3,260 votes.
The INEC returning officer also disclosed that the number of registered voters was 1,485,141, while the number of total accredited voters was 459,492. The number of valid votes was 444,567, while the number of rejected votes was 13,214, and the total votes cast was 457,781.
As a result of the development, Buni has been reelected for a second term of four years.
In Jigawa State, Mallam Umar Namadi of the APC was declared the winner of the governorship election.
Namadi scored 618,449 votes to defeat his closest rivals, Mustafa Lamido of the PDP, who polled 368,726 votes, and Aminu Ringim of the NNPP, who got 37,156 votes.
The governor-elect thanked God and the people of the state for their commitment, support and prayers for his victory. He urged them to remain prayerful and committed to the development of the state.
Namadi promised to continue with the legacies of his predecessor, Alhaji Muhammad Badaru Abubakar, which are anchored on prudence and good governance.
In Katsina State, Dikko Umar-Radda of the APC was declared the winner of the governorship election. According to the INEC returning officer, Umar-Radda polled 859,892 votes to win the election. Yakubu Lado-Danmarke of the PDP came second with 486,620 votes.
The INEC returning officer also gave details on voter participation in the election. He disclosed that the number of registered voters in the state was 3,516,719, while those accredited for the governorship election were 1,399,291. The number of rejected votes was 20,579, while the total valid votes was 1,365,848, and the total votes cast was 1,386,427.
Elections were cancelled in 88 polling units due to irregularities such as violence and over-voting.
The election results have been received with mixed reactions from the public. While supporters of the APC have celebrated the victories in the three states, the opposition parties have rejected the results, alleging that irregularities marred the elections.
The PDP in Yobe has expressed its dissatisfaction with the outcome of the election. The party’s chairman, Sani Nguru, said the party would challenge the results in court, alleging that there were instances of ballot box snatching and violence during the election.
PDP also rejected the results announced by INEC in Jigawa, alleging that the election was marred by vote-buying and other irregularities. The party’s governorship candidate, Aminu Ibrahim Ringim, said the party would challenge the result declared by INEC in court.
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