Governor Charles Chukwuma Soludo has emerged victorious in all 21 local government areas of Anambra State in Saturday’s governorship election.
The results, announced by officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) at the state collation centre in Awka, show a clear lead for the incumbent governor.
INEC is expected to formally declare him the winner once the final collation and verification of figures are completed.
According to electoral guidelines, a candidate must win the highest number of votes and secure at least 25 per cent of the votes in two-thirds of the state’s 21 LGAs to be declared the winner. By sweeping all LGAs, Soludo has comfortably met the constitutional requirement.
The governor, who was first elected about four years ago, is now poised to begin a second and final term in office when his current tenure ends next March.
Saturday’s election saw Soludo, the candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), face strong challengers, including Nicholas Ukachukwu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and George Moghalu of the Labour Party. In total, 16 political parties participated in the poll.
Reports from across the state indicate that the election was largely peaceful, though there were isolated allegations of vote-buying in some areas.
Observer groups, including YIAGA Africa, estimated voter turnout to be between 20 and 23 per cent, showing moderate participation by registered voters.
With results from all local governments already in his favour, Governor Soludo’s re-election appears sealed, pending INEC’s official declaration.
The article was originally published on Politics Nigeria.