Osun Poll: Adeleke’s Victory Faces No Tribunal Challenge

 

Governor Ademola Adeleke’s victory in the August 15, 2026 Osun State governorship election has gone unchallenged at the Election Petition Tribunal after the 21-day window for filing petitions expired without any of the defeated parties seeking legal redress.

The filing period, which is stipulated for candidates or political parties wishing to challenge the outcome of the election, ended on Saturday, September 5, with the tribunal registry recording no petition against the result.

Adeleke, who contested the election on the platform of the Accord Party, was declared winner by the Independent National Electoral Commission after polling 511,067 votes.

His closest challenger, the All Progressives Congress candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, popularly known as AMBO, scored 444,815 votes, while other candidates and their parties trailed behind. Fifteen political parties participated in the election.

The development is particularly notable because election results in Osun have historically generated prolonged legal battles. Following the 2022 governorship election, for instance, the APC candidate, Gboyega Oyetola, challenged Adeleke’s victory at the tribunal, setting off a lengthy judicial process that eventually reached the Supreme Court.

This time, however, none of the 14 parties defeated by Adeleke has taken the matter to court within the constitutionally prescribed period. The tribunal registry, which had remained open for petitions after the election, closed the filing window without recording a challenge.

The APC and Oyebamiji were also reported not to have filed a petition against the result before the deadline. Efforts by journalists to obtain the APC’s reaction to the decision not to challenge the election were still unsuccessful as of the time of the latest reports.

With the petition window now closed, Adeleke’s victory has avoided the immediate uncertainty that usually accompanies a disputed governorship election. The absence of a petition also means that the tribunal has no election dispute arising from the August 15 poll before it to determine.

For Osun, the development marks a striking departure from the state’s recent electoral history, where the ballot box has frequently been followed by the courtroom. This time, the political contest appears to have ended at the ballot box rather than moving to the bench.