The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Governor Biodun Oyebanji, winner of the Ekiti State governorship election held on Saturday.

The Returning Officer for the election and Vice-Chancellor of the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA), Prof. Adenike Oladiji, announced the result in the early hours of Sunday at the INEC State Collation Centre in Ado-Ekiti.

Oyebanji secured 319,224 votes to defeat his closest challengers, Olumayokun Oluyede of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who polled 40,533 votes, and Dare Bejide of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), who garnered 12,872 votes.

Declaring the result, Prof. Oladiji said Governor Oyebanji had satisfied the requirements of the law and was therefore returned elected for a second term.

INEC disclosed that 988,251 voters were registered for the election, while 384,940 were accredited. A total of 382,109 votes were cast, with 375,777 declared valid.

The results showed that the APC won convincingly across the state’s 16 local government areas. Notably, the PDP candidate lost his home local government, Ikere, where the APC polled 11,116 votes against the PDP’s 9,872 votes.

The outcome gives Governor Oyebanji a second four-year term in office after a decisive victory over the opposition.