Tribunal Dismisses PDP’s Petition Against Edo Governor Okpebholo

On Wednesday, the Edo Governorship Election Petition Tribunal dismissed the petition brought by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate, Asue Ighodalo, challenging the election of Governor Monday Okpebholo from the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The tribunal convened in Abuja and upheld Governor Okpebholo’s victory in the governorship election held on September 21, 2024. In a unanimous decision delivered around 7 p.m., the three-member panel led by Wilfred Kpochi concluded that the petitioners failed to substantiate their claims of over-voting and non-compliance with electoral laws.

The PDP and Ighodalo had alleged that the election was fraught with irregularities and had filed their lawsuit against the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Governor Okpebholo, and the APC. In previous rulings, the tribunal also dismissed similar petitions from the Action Alliance and the Accord Party contesting Okpebholo’s victory.

According to INEC, Governor Okpebholo secured 291,667 votes, defeating Ighodalo, who received 247,655 votes. The governor and his running mate, Dennis Idahosa, were officially sworn in as the governor and deputy governor of Edo State on November 12, 2024.

Following the tribunal’s ruling, the PDP and Ighodalo expressed their dissatisfaction with the election results and sought to have INEC’s declaration of Okpebholo as the winner overturned.