By Abiola Olawale
The highly anticipated governorship election of Edo State is less than 12 hours away, scheduled for September 21, 2024.
The incumbent Governor, Godwin Obaseki, is approaching the end of his second term in office, and it is expected that the winner of Saturday’s governorship election will succeed him.
As in previous elections, Saturday’s governorship election is anticipated to be fiercely contested, with three major candidates vying to secure sufficient votes for a victorious outcome.
In anticipation of the upcoming election on Saturday, The New Diplomat provides comprehensive updates and evaluations of the election process and the chances of the prospective governorship candidates.
With respect to the official roster released by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), a total of 17 political parties have nominated candidates for the gubernatorial election.
16 of the candidates are male while only one is female.
Edo state has registered 2,501,318 voters with 373,030 uncollected permanent voters cards. INEC recorded an outstanding number of 2,128,288 collected PVCs.
The election is going to be held in all 18 local government areas divided into three senatorial districts.
Edo Central senatorial district has five LGA – Esan South-East, Igueben, Esan North-East, Esan West, and Esan Central.
The Edo South senatorial district covers seven LGA – Oredo, Ovia South West, Egor, Ovia North East, Orhionmwon, Ikpoba Okha, and Uhunmwode local government areas.
Edo North senatorial district comprises six LGA – Etsako West, Etsako East, Etsako Central, Owan West, Owan East, and Akoko Edo. The headquarters (collation centre) of Edo North is Auchi in Etsako West LGA.
Although INEC listed 17 candidates for Saturday’s election, the contest has taken the form of a three-horse race, with Senator Monday Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress(APC),
Dr Asue Ighodalo of the Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP), and Olumide Akpata of the Labour Party(LP), leading the charge.
Edo State, like other states in Nigeria, is divided into three senatorial districts: Edo South, Edo North, and Edo Central.
In terms of the number of local governments, Edo South has the largest, with seven LGAs, followed by Edo North with six, and Edo Central with five.
Since 1999, there has been an informal power rotation arrangement in the state. It is expected that the next governor of Edo State should naturally come from the Edo Central senatorial district.
The APC and PDP candidates are both from Edo Central which had only assumed the office of the deputy Governor in 1999 and the office of the Governor only for a short term between 1979 and 1983. While Akpata is from the populous zone, Edo South, which makes it even more unpredictable.
Meanwhile, Okpebholo, representing Edo Central Senatorial district of Edo state in the Senate, in his manifesto, promised free transportation and emphasized developing the Edo state’s mobility and economic sectors.
Ighodalo in his campaign manifesto titled “Pathway to Prosperity for All,” promised to highlight the importance of care for the vulnerable, including children, youths, and women.
Akpata, in his manifesto, outlined his revitalization plans for healthcare, education, infrastructure, and social and economic sectors of Edo state, promising to do a remarkable job if elected.
