In a tightly contested race, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Usman Ododo, secured victory in the Kogi State Governorship Election held on November 11, 2023. The State Returning Officer, Prof Johnson Urama, announced Ododo as the winner with 446,237 votes, defeating Murtala Ajaka of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and Dino Melaye of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
“Ahmed Usman Ododo of APC, having satisfied the requirement of the law is hereby declared the winner and is returned elected,” Urama declared in a room crowded with party agents and election observers.
Results from the 21 local government areas (LGAs) revealed Ododo’s dominance in over half of them. The ex-Auditor General of Local Government in Kogi, backed by Governor Yahaya Bello, clinched the much-coveted seat, marking the end of Bello’s double terms of eight years.
However, controversy arose as Melaye and civil rights groups raised concerns over “filled result sheets” in the Ogori/Magongo Local Government Area. The PDP candidate called for a suspension of the election, citing violence and vote buying. INEC responded by suspending the election in nine wards, with plans for fresh polls in 59 polling units on November 18, 2023.
INEC introduced a condition, stating that the decision for fresh elections is contingent on the Returning Officer’s application of the Margin of Lead Principle. Urama, in his late Sunday declaration, argued that the margin of lead, with the APC candidate ahead by about 200,000 votes, rendered the fresh elections unnecessary.
Both Ajaka and Melaye have rejected the election outcome, expressing disappointment in INEC and accusing security agencies of collusion with the ruling APC in Kogi.