The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared Governor Biodun Oyebanji of the All Progressives Congress (APC) winner of the 2026 Ekiti State governorship election, returning him for a second term after a sweeping victory across all 16 local government areas.
The result, announced in the early hours of Sunday, June 21, at INEC’s headquarters in Ado-Ekiti, confirmed what many had expected after a largely peaceful poll the previous day. Oyebanji’s dominance was emphatic, leaving his closest rivals trailing by enormous margins.
How the Votes Fell
Oyebanji polled 319,224 votes to defeat Dr Wole Oluyede of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who secured 40,543 votes. Ambassador Dare Bejide of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) came a distant third with 12,872 votes, while the Action Democratic Party’s candidate managed 1,269.
The margin between Oyebanji and Oluyede stood at 278,681 votes — a gap that underlines the scale of the APC’s grip on the state. Smaller parties recorded modest figures: Accord polled 564, the Labour Party 276, the African Action Congress 195, and the SDP 179.
Returning Officer Confirms the Mandate
The Returning Officer for the election, Professor Adenike Oladiji, Vice-Chancellor of the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA), formally announced the outcome. She certified that Oyebanji, having satisfied the requirements of the law and scored the highest number of votes, was duly declared winner and returned elected.
According to INEC’s breakdown, 988,251 voters were registered for the election, while 384,940 were accredited. A total of 382,109 votes were cast, of which 6,332 were rejected, leaving 375,778 valid votes.
A Clean Sweep of All 16 Councils
Oyebanji recorded victories in every local government area, demonstrating broad support across both urban and rural Ekiti. In Ado-Ekiti, the state capital, he secured 38,026 votes. He also posted strong showings in Ekiti West with 28,258 votes, Ekiti East with 26,359, Ijero with 25,506 and Moba with 20,500.
Notably, the governor even won decisively in Ekiti South-West, the home council of ADC candidate Dare Bejide, polling 14,705 votes there to Bejide’s 1,076. The PDP’s strongest single performance came in Ikere, where Oluyede scored 9,892 votes against Oyebanji’s 11,116.
Reactions to the Victory
Congratulatory messages began flowing in soon after the declaration, with party figures and allies hailing the result as an endorsement of the governor’s first-term record. Supporters framed the win as a reflection of grassroots trust rather than a narrow partisan contest.
Opposition figures, for their part, raised concerns about the conduct of the poll, particularly the vote-buying allegations that surfaced during voting. How those grievances are pursued, if at all, will shape the post-election conversation in the state.
What the Result Means
Analysts have linked the landslide to the administration’s record on infrastructure, education, healthcare and workers’ welfare, as well as a wave of endorsements from political leaders, traditional rulers and grassroots stakeholders ahead of the poll. Former Governor Ayodele Fayose had earlier predicted a comfortable Oyebanji win.
The outcome consolidates the APC’s standing in Ekiti and hands Oyebanji a fresh four-year mandate to continue his development agenda. The APC’s collation agent, Senator Cyril Fasuyi, urged other contenders to join the governor in building the state, noting that in every contest there can be only one winner.
The scale of the margin also carries a message for 2027 calculations, with the ruling party likely to read the result as evidence of strong structures in the South-West. For the opposition, the gap underscores the rebuilding task ahead in a state where it once held sway.
The election was not without controversy, with vote-buying allegations and the presence of EFCC operatives at some polling units generating tension during voting. Those issues, however, did not alter the decisive nature of the result.
