THE governorship candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the Edo State governorship election held today, Saturday, September 21, Olumide Akpata, has lauded the seamless voting process at his polling unit.
Akpata who voted at his polling unit in Ward 06, Oredo Local Government Area, commended the large turnout of voters at the unit.
He, however, said he was unsure if the process was the same across the state.
He encouraged the voters at his polling unit to keep vigil and urged those yet to vote to come out and do so.
According to Akpata, the state people are eager for a change, adding that the voters would make the right choice.
He said he would contact his agents across the state to get the proper situation report on the election.
The ICIR reported early morning downpours delayed voting in some parts of Edo Central Senatorial District as voters waited in long queues for the arrival of officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) who conducted the state governorship poll on Saturday, September 21.
The Esan District, consisting of five Local Government Areas (Esan South-East, Igueben, Esan North-East, Esan West, and Esan Central), is key to the election because two major candidates, Asue Ighodalo of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and Monday Okpepholo of the All Progressive Congress (APC) are from there.
As of 7:50 am, polling units faced delays due to the late arrival of election materials and officials, while rain kept many voters indoors.
The ICIR reporter on the ground noticed some voters at Ivue primary school, Polling unit 7, Ward 2, Uromi waiting to vote in the rain with their umbrellas.
The ICIR reports that the pre-election activities in the state have been characterised by dramas from the leading political parties, including the ruling party in the state, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), the Labour Party, and the All Progressive Congress (APC)
Seventeen political parties are competing for votes in the poll, with three candidates – PDP’s Ighodalo, APC’s Okpebholo and Akpata of the LP leading the race.
There are approximately 2.63 million registered voters but only 2.25 million of these have collected their permanent voter’s card (PVC), making them eligible to vote, according to data from the Independent Electoral Commission (INEC).
By this, the election in Edo would be determined by only 85.57 per cent of registered voters casting their ballot in 4,519 polling units across the 18 Local Government Areas of the state.
Meanwhile, a few hours before the election, The ICIR reporter observed that the atmosphere across key cities, including Benin, Irrua, and Uromi appears largely peaceful as residents prepare to cast their votes.
A reporter with the ICIR
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