Osun guber: Did the people just rewrite Nigeria’s election script?

By Osordi Ayomide 

For years, Nigerians have watched elections follow a familiar and sometimes frustrating pattern whereby the people vote, results are collated, but somewhere between the polling unit and the final declaration; several activities takes place. 

There have been elections where voters questioned figures announced, others where the delay in releasing results created room for suspicion, and many occasions when INEC’s failure to provide timely, real-time updates left citizens wondering what was happening behind the scenes. That is why the Osun governorship election has attracted so much attention. 

Ademola Adeleke of the Accord Party was declared winner with 511,067 votes, defeating the APC candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, who polled 444,815 votes but beyond Adeleke’s victory is a bigger question, “Did the people of Osun finally disrupt a political system whose script has often appeared predictable?”

The election did not happen in isolation. In the weeks leading to the poll, several developments turned Osun into a major political battleground. The EFCC’s restriction of the state government’s account became a contentious issue, with the anti-graft agency linking the action to an investigation, while the Adeleke administration and its supporters viewed it as politically motivated. Then came the heavy mobilisation by the APC, with governors, party leaders and other prominent figures making their way to Osun to campaign for Oyebamiji.

In itself, bringing political heavyweights into an election is nothing unusual. What made this one different was the perception that the state had become a major test of political influence. For some voters, the contest was no longer simply about choosing a governor; it was about deciding how much influence outsiders should have over their choice.

Perhaps the most striking development came from the voters themselves. Many young Nigerians refused to simply cast their ballots and disappear until the following morning. They stayed awake, followed the collation process and flooded social media with updates, pictures and videos. 

In a country where election-night uncertainty has become almost routine, that level of public attention matters. Citizens were watching the process as it unfolded instead of waiting until the final declaration before asking questions. It would be difficult to say that this alone determined the outcome, but it certainly made the electoral process harder to operate entirely away from public scrutiny. 

Davido’s role also added another layer to the election. His open and unapologetic support for Adeleke kept the campaign alive on social media and showed once again that Nigerian political communication is no longer controlled solely by politicians, and traditional media.

Then there was INEC’s handling of results. The real-time display of results gave Nigerians something they have demanded for years: the opportunity to follow the numbers as they emerged. It was far from perfect, and the platform itself attracted criticism over its appearance and performance, but the principle was important. If INEC can make results available in real time during Osun, Nigerians will reasonably ask why the same cannot become the standard for the 2027 general election. At the same time, it would be too early to celebrate this as evidence that Nigeria has completely solved its electoral transparency problem. One relatively encouraging election cannot erase years of distrust. The real test will be whether INEC can consistently provide the same level of transparency when the political stakes are much higher.

Adeleke’s victory, therefore, should not be viewed simply as another party defeating another at the polls since the opposition party came into the election with powerful political figures, governors and a formidable campaign structure, while Adeleke had the advantage of incumbency, grassroots support and a campaign that appeared to resonate with many voters. 

In the end, however, the people had the final say. Whether Osun 2026 becomes a genuine turning point or is remembered simply as another election outcome remains to be seen.

The real question is whether the lessons from Osun will serve as an eye-opener to political stakeholders and encourage a conscious effort to restore the true power of democracy to citizens across the country. Because beyond the politicians, the parties and the political machinery, one thing remains unchanged: at the end of the day, the people have the final say.