Accord’s 66,252-vote victory: How adeleke defeated Tinubu, APC in Osun

Governor Ademola Adeleke’s victory in the 2026 Osun State governorship election was driven largely by his dominance in key strongholds, particularly Ede, combined with victories across several other local government areas that gave him a statewide lead the All Progressives Congress (APC) could not overturn.

The final results announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) showed Adeleke, who contested on the platform of the Accord Party, polling 511,067 votes, ahead of APC candidate Bola Oyebamiji, who scored 444,815 votes. African Democratic Congress (ADC) candidate Najeem Salaam finished third with 17,180 votes.

Adeleke defeated Oyebamiji by 66,252 votes.

Adeleke won 19 LGAs, APC won 11

The distribution of the votes was central to the outcome.

Adeleke won 19 of Osun’s 30 local government areas, while Oyebamiji secured 11.

But the decisive factor was not simply the number of LGAs won by each candidate. It was the size of their respective winning margins.

Adeleke recorded particularly large victories in some of his strongest areas, creating a substantial cushion that APC victories elsewhere could not erase.

Ede provided Adeleke’s biggest advantage

The two local government areas that make up Ede, the governor’s hometown, produced one of the largest margins of the election.

In Ede North, Accord polled 35,427 votes, against APC’s 10,283, giving Adeleke a margin of 25,144 votes.

The pattern was repeated in Ede South, where Accord secured 26,188 votes, compared with 6,219 for APC.

That gave Adeleke another 19,969-vote advantage.

Combined, Ede North and Ede South delivered:

Accord: 61,615 votes

APC: 16,502 votes

Adeleke’s net advantage: 45,113 votes

With the final statewide margin standing at 66,252 votes, the importance of the Ede axis to Adeleke’s victory is clear.

Osogbo added to the lead

The state capital also went to Adeleke.

In Osogbo, Accord scored 36,480 votes, while APC polled 30,474.

Adeleke therefore won the local government by 6,006 votes.

The ADC recorded 1,503 votes in Osogbo, its strongest performance in the local government results under review.

Adeleke dominated the Ife axis

The Ife area also played a significant role in the election.

Accord won Ife East, polling 27,201 votes against APC’s 18,600 — a margin of 8,601 votes.

In Ife Central, Adeleke secured 21,171 votes, compared with 15,913 for Oyebamiji, giving him a further 5,258-vote advantage.

Accord also won Ife North, with 13,879 votes against APC’s 9,613, a margin of 4,266 votes.

APC, however, won Ife South, where it polled 14,678 votes against Accord’s 13,507.

Across the four Ife councils, Accord accumulated 75,758 votes, compared with APC’s 58,804, giving Adeleke a combined advantage of 16,954 votes.

Other victories strengthened Adeleke’s position

Adeleke’s advantage was further boosted by victories in several other local government areas.

In Egbedore, Accord scored 19,278 votes against APC’s 11,194, giving Adeleke an 8,084-vote margin.

In Iwo, Accord polled 27,085 votes against APC’s 19,660, a difference of 7,425 votes.

Adeleke also won Oriade, where Accord secured 21,343 votes against APC’s 14,863, producing a margin of 6,480 votes.

These margins accumulated across the state and helped keep APC from closing the gap.

APC remained a formidable challenger

Oyebamiji’s defeat did not mean APC lacked significant support.

The party won 11 LGAs, including some with substantial margins.

Its strongest showing came in Irewole, where APC polled 29,972 votes against Accord’s 10,934 — a margin of 19,038 votes.

APC also won Boripe by 7,515 votes, polling 19,963 against Accord’s 12,448.

The party further secured victories in Olorunda, Ilesa East, Ife South, Ola-Oluwa, Isokan, Obokun, Atakumosa West and Atakumosa East.

However, the margins generated in those areas were insufficient to offset Adeleke’s larger advantages elsewhere.

The mathematics behind Adeleke’s victory

The election demonstrates why the number of local governments won does not, by itself, determine the winner of a governorship election.

APC won 11 LGAs, but its combined vote total was 444,815.

Accord won 19 LGAs and accumulated 511,067 votes.

The difference was 66,252 votes.

For comparison, APC’s 19,038-vote advantage in Irewole was less than half of the 45,113-vote advantage Adeleke secured from Ede North and Ede South alone.

That arithmetic largely explains why APC’s victories could not overturn the overall result.

ADC finished a distant third

The ADC, with Najeem Salaam as its candidate, recorded 17,180 votes statewide.

Although the party emerged as the third force in the election, its overall performance was nowhere near the two leading candidates.

Its strongest showing in the results under review came in Ejigbo, where it scored 5,053 votes.

It also recorded 1,503 votes in Osogbo, 935 in Ife East, 747 in Ife Central, and 673 each in Ifedayo and Ilesa West.

A two-horse race despite 13 candidates

Although 13 candidates ultimately contested the election, the results quickly became dominated by Accord and APC.

The two parties jointly secured 955,882 votes, dwarfing the 17,180 votes recorded by ADC.

This showed the extent to which the contest had effectively become a two-party battle between Adeleke and Oyebamiji.

Adeleke’s geographical spread

Another important feature of Adeleke’s victory was the geographical spread of his support.

His winning LGAs included Ede North, Ede South, Osogbo, Ife Central, Ife East, Ila, Boluwaduro, Irepodun, Ayedire, Ejigbo, Ayedaade, Ifelodun, Ife North, Ilesa West, Egbedore, Orolu, Oriade, Ifedayo, Odo-Otin and Iwo, based on the collated results.

This meant that Adeleke did not rely exclusively on one political bloc.

He combined overwhelming victories in some areas with competitive performances in others, producing a statewide coalition strong enough to secure a second term.

Adeleke’s “bulldozer” declaration

The victory also gave context to Adeleke’s comments during the campaign.

Days before the election, the governor described himself as a “bulldozer”, insisting that he was not intimidated by the political machinery backing Oyebamiji.

> “I am a bulldozer. I am talk and do. I am not afraid of federal might and governors backing the APC candidate. If they like, they should bring all the governors,” Adeleke said.

The statement became one of the defining moments of his campaign.

The final results showed that, despite the federal and gubernatorial support mobilised by APC, Adeleke was able to maintain a strong enough base across the state to secure victory.

The final picture

The 2026 Osun governorship election was ultimately decided by vote distribution and margins, rather than simply the number of LGAs won.

Final results:

Accord — Ademola Adeleke: 511,067

APC — Bola Oyebamiji: 444,815

ADC — Najeem Salaam: 17,180

Adeleke’s winning margin: 66,252 votes

Adeleke’s biggest advantage came from Ede North and Ede South, which together gave him a 45,113-vote margin. Osogbo and the Ife axis further strengthened his position, while victories in Egbedore, Iwo, Oriade and other areas helped maintain the gap.

APC remained a major political force, winning 11 LGAs, but its victories were not large enough collectively to neutralise Adeleke’s stronger margins.

In the end, Adeleke’s 511,067 votes across 19 LGAs were enough to secure victory over Oyebamiji’s 444,815 votes, giving the Accord candidate a 66,252-vote advantage and another term as governor of Osun State.

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