Accord Party Chair Calls for Unity After Osun Election Results

The National Chairman of the Accord Party, Maxwell Mgbudem, has called Governor Ademola Adeleke's re-election a victory of bravery over fear and intimidation.

At a news conference on Monday in Osogbo, Mgbudem said the election showed that the people were determined to choose their governor freely and peacefully. They stood strong to protect their votes despite facing many challenges.

He noted that the election period saw a lot of unusual harassment, intimidation, destruction of property, arrests, detention, and even killings.

Mgbudem dedicated this victory to the peace-loving people of Osun State. He praised their strong belief in democracy and their support for the party.

"We commend all Nigerians, civil society organizations, local and foreign election observers, the international community, the electoral commission, and security agencies. They prioritized electoral integrity and transparency and upheld democratic values during the Osun gubernatorial election.

"We did it all together and once again made Nigeria proud.

"The election is over. The people of Osun State have won. There is no victor, no vanquished," he said.

The Accord chairman also praised candidates from other political parties who stepped down for Adeleke. He called this a strong signal of political alliance and cooperation that would strengthen democracy in the country.

He urged other political parties, candidates, members, and supporters to come together and work with the governor to improve the state.

"Osun State belongs to all its citizens.

"The interest of the state is greater than individual and political interests," he said.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared Adeleke the winner early Sunday. He received 511,067 votes, beating his closest rival, Bola Oyebamiji of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who got 444,815 votes.

Prof. Joshua Ogunwole, the INEC Returning Officer, announced the results at the INEC collation center. He mentioned that Najeem Salaam from the African Democratic Congress (ADC) came in third with 17,180 votes.

Ogunwole, who is also the Vice-Chancellor of the Federal University Oye-Ekiti, stated that the total valid votes cast were 985,079. There were 20,721 rejected votes, bringing the total votes cast to 1,005,800.