THE Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared Abdullahi Ganduje, governor of Kano State, winner of the gubernatorial election, amidst protest by the opposition, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).

After the collation of all the results, Ganduje who contested under the platform of All Progressives Congress (APC) won the election with just 8,982 votes as he polled 1,033,695 votes to defeat his closest rival Abba Yusuf of the PDP who secured 1,024,713 votes.

The returning officer, Bello Shehu, announced the results on Sunday after PDP had called on INEC to cancel the supplementary and declared its candidate the rightful winner of the governorship.

In the first election held on March 9, the PDP candidate led with over 26,000 votes, polling 1,014,474 votes to Ganduje’s 987,819 votes but INEC declined to announce him the  winner because the margin was less than the cancelled votes.

Subsequently, a supplementary election which was reportedly marred by violence was conducted on Saturday.

According to INEC, Ganduje won the supplementary election held in 28 out of the 44 local government areas in the state with 45,876 votes while Yusuf scored only 10,239.

PDP had kicked against the supplementary election, pointing out that the exercise was overtaken by thugs loyal to APC.

The PDP rejected the results, insisting that its candidate, Abba K. Yusuf, is the rightful winner of the election.

The opposition party in a statement by its spokesman, Kola Ologbondiyan, insisted that Yusuf had won the election since March 9, having fulfilled the constitutional requirement of securing the highest number of votes and the statutory 25 percent in two-thirds of the state.