BREAKING: INEC Announces Winner Of Ondo South Senatorial By-Election

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared Prof. Dayo Faduyile of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the winner of the Ondo South Senatorial District bye-election held on Saturday.

According to Ireporter Online, the returning officer, Prof. Gbenga Solomon-Ibileye, who serves as Vice Chancellor of the Federal University, Lokoja, announced the result on Sunday at the collation centre in Okitipupa Local Government Area of Ondo State.

Faduyile, a former National President of the Nigerian Medical Association and Special Adviser on Health Matters to Ondo State Governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, secured a total of 68,474 votes to defeat his closest challenger, Adeolu Akinwunmi of the Allied People’s Movement (APM), who polled 1,411 votes.

Other contenders included Adesanya Olaoluwa of the Action Peoples Party (APP), who garnered 213 votes, and Clement Funso-Nejo of the Boot Party (BP), who scored 70 votes. A total of 70,770 valid votes were cast, while 602 ballots were rejected.

The bye-election was conducted across six local government areas in the senatorial district, including Okitipupa, Ilaje, Ese-Odo, Irele, Odigbo, and Ile-Oluji/Oke-Igbo, to fill the vacant seat left by Senator Jimoh Ibrahim following his appointment as Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations.

The INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner in Ondo State, Dr. Mutiu Agboke, described the exercise as a “testing ground” ahead of the 2027 general elections. He noted that observed minor challenges would guide improvements in future electoral processes, adding that all officials deployed to riverine communities returned safely without any reported incidents.