The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has won 16 of the 18 local government chairmanship seats in the recently concluded Ondo State Council elections.
The Chairman of the Ondo State Independent Electoral Commission (ODIEC), Joseph Aeemo, announced the results on Sunday at the commission’s headquarters in Akure. He noted that while the election in Ondo West Local Government Area was rescheduled and ongoing, results from Owo Local Government Area were still being awaited.
A total of 12 political parties contested in the elections held on Saturday. These parties included Action Alliance (AA), Action Democratic Party (ADP), Action People’s Party (APP), All Progressives Congress (APC), All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Boot Party (BP), Labour Party (LP), National Rescue Party (NRP), New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Social Democratic Party (SDP), Young Progressive Party (YPP), and Zenith Labour Party (ZLP).
However, the main opposition party, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), withdrew from the election, citing a lack of confidence in ODIEC’s ability to conduct a credible poll.
The last council election in Ondo State was conducted on August 23, 2020, with the tenure of the elected officials ending on August 22, 2023. Since then, the administration of the state’s 18 local government areas has been managed by civil servants, specifically the Heads of Local Government Administrations.
After several postponements, ODIEC finally fixed January 18, 2025, for the elections, which were conducted peacefully across the state.
As the APC consolidates its control over local governance in the state, attention now turns to the outcomes of the rescheduled Ondo West election and the results pending from Owo Local Government Area. The successful conduct of the polls marks the return of elected leadership to local councils in Ondo State, providing an opportunity for enhanced grassroots governance.
