• Dismisses Agboola Ajayi’s Petition
By Hamilton Nwosu
The Akure Division of the Court of Appeal in Ondo State on Thursday upheld the election of Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa of Ondo State as the winner of the November 16, 2024, governorship election conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The judgment was delivered by a three-member panel of the Appeal court, led by Justice Yargata Nimpar.
The panel affirmed the decision of the lower Ondo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, which earlier validated the governor’s victory in the November 16, 2024, election.
Consequently, the Justice Nimpar-led panel dismissed the appeal by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its governorship candidate in the election, Agboola Ajayi, to affirm Aiyedatiwa’s election.
The Justice Nimpar-led panel of the appellate court while dismissing Agboola’s appeal, described it as devoid of merit.
The New Diplomat reports that the November 2024 election saw Aiyedatiwa, representing the APC, securing 366,781 votes, to defeat his closest rival, Agboola Ajayi of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who polled 117,845 votes.
However, opposition parties, including the PDP and Labour Party, had raised concerns over alleged electoral fraud and irregularities, prompting legal challenges.
Earlier in June 2025, the Ondo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal had dismissed petitions brought forward by five opposition parties—Action Alliance (AA), Allied People’s Movement (APM), Social Democratic Party (SDP), African Democratic Congress (ADC), and PDP.
The Tribunal ruled that the claims of certificate forgery, over-voting, and non-compliance with the Electoral Act lacked merit.
