The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, winner of a controversial governorship election held in the state on Saturday, March 18.
The election was marred by violence, xenophobia and thuggery in several polling units, with persons of Igbo extraction prevented from voting by Yoruba hoodlums.
Sanwo-Olu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) won in 19 of the 20 local governments in the state, with Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour of the Labour Party winning in one.
The Returning Officer of the Governorship and House of Assembly elections in Lagos State, Professor Adenike Oladeji, made the declaration in the wee hours of Monday.
Sanwo-Olu polled 762,134 votes to defeat his closest rival, Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour of the Labour Party who polled 312,329.
Olajide Adeniran, popularly called Jandor, of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) scored 62,449 votes.
The total number of registered voters in the state is 7,060,195, but the number of accredited voters for the poll was 1,182,620.
The Igbos are one of the dominant ethnic groups in Lagos; and are famed for their commerce and industry. During the election, they were intimidated and prevented from voting in large swathes of the state because of their preference for the Labour Party candidate.
The APC, through different nomenclatures, has maintained a stranglehold on Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial capital and most populous city, since Nigeria returned to civilian rule in 1999.
