OSOGBO, Nigeria — Despite an intensive mobilisation of national political heavyweights, the All Progressives Congress (APC) failed to wrest Osun State from incumbent Governor Ademola Adeleke in the August 15, 2026, governorship election.
Adeleke, contesting on the Accord Party platform, was declared the winner by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) with 511,067 votes against 444,815 for APC candidate Bola Oyebamiji, popularly known as AMBO. The margin stood at 66,252 votes.
Adeleke won 19 of the state’s 30 local government areas, while Oyebamiji secured 11. Najeem Salaam of the African Democratic Congress finished a distant third with 17,180 votes.
INEC Returning Officer Professor Joshua Ogunwole announced the results at the state collation centre in Osogbo on Sunday, August 16, after the accreditation of 1,010,684 voters and the recording of 985,079 valid votes.
The APC had framed the contest as a critical test ahead of the 2027 general elections and a must-win for the ruling party. National Chairman Nentawe Yilwatda publicly declared that the party would deploy governors, ministers, federal lawmakers and local structures from across the country to secure victory for Oyebamiji.
President Bola Tinubu’s political influence, the backing of former Osun Governor and current Minister of Marine and Blue Economy Gboyega Oyetola, elder statesman Bisi Akande, Senate President Godswill Akpabio and other prominent figures were widely cited as key assets in the campaign.
Yet the heavyweight deployment proved insufficient. Several analyses and post-election comments from within the APC pointed to deep internal divisions as a decisive factor.
The party’s primary process in late 2025 left lingering grievances after the disqualification of some aspirants and the emergence of Oyebamiji. Aggrieved members, including segments linked to former aspirants such as Iyiola Omisore, were reported to have withheld full support or worked against the party’s candidate.
APC chieftain Farouk Aliyu stated that the party “defeated itself,” attributing the loss largely to internal disagreements over the candidate. “There are people who were not happy with our candidate… some people were happy with the candidate,” he said, adding that the selection process needed review.
Other reports highlighted unresolved tensions between factions associated with Oyetola and other stakeholders, which undermined coordinated mobilisation on the ground.
Beyond party infighting, analysts noted that national economic challenges under the APC-led federal government became a campaign liability for Oyebamiji.
Adeleke’s incumbency advantage, established grassroots network and ability to consolidate support across key areas, including his Ede base and major centres such as Osogbo, further blunted the opposition push. Some political figures who backed the APC, including former Governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola, were unable to deliver their own polling units.
The outcome marks a second consecutive defeat for the APC in Osun after Adeleke’s 2022 victory over then-incumbent Oyetola.
For the ruling party, the result represents a setback in a state often viewed as part of President Tinubu’s South-West political base and raises questions about the limits of national influence in state-level contests shaped by local dynamics and internal cohesion.
Adeleke has called for peace and unity following the election, while the APC is expected to conduct an internal review as it prepares for future electoral battles.
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