Adeleke, Oyebamiji, 12 Others Scrabble For Osun’s 2.3 million Votes

Governor Ademola Adeleke will defend his seat against 13 challengers, led by APC’s Bola Oyebamiji, as parties begin the race for Osun’s 2.3 million votes. The election pits incumbency and grassroots structure against the opposition and new entrants, all targeting the same voter base, writes JOSHUA DADA

On 15 August 2026, two million, three hundred and thirty-nine thousand, two hundred and thirty-three (2,339,233) voters will go to the polls to determine who occupies Bola Ige House, the seat of the Osun State government, for another four years.

No fewer than 14 political parties are already warming up through door-to-door, ward-to-ward, constituency-to-constituency and statewide campaigns to canvass for votes on the day of the deal.

According to the release issued by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the electoral umpire, the contestants are: Accord Party (A): Ademola Adeleke; Action Alliance (AC): Farinloye Olarenwaju; African Action Congress (AAC): Esan Olajide; African Democratic Congress (ADC): Najeem Salam.

Also on the list are: African Democratic Party (ADP): Adeagbo Opawoye; All Progressives Congress (APC): Bola Oyebamiji; All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA): Adesina Adeyemi-Doro; Allied People Movement (APM): Adewale Adebayo.

Others include: Action Peoples Party (APP): Clement Adesuyi, Boot Party (BP): Masilo Adeleke, New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP): Taofeek Adeleke, Peoples Redemption Party (PRP): Saliu Oyelami, Young Progressives Party (YPP): Ogunsakin Olalekan, and Zenith Labour Party (ZLP): Adefemi Adesuyi.

The 2,339,233 eligible voters for the election were disclosed in a document titled “tagged Analysis of Register Of Voters”, signed by Osun INEC Director of Voter Registry, Olatunde Olalere, and made available to political parties on 9 July 2026.

At a stakeholders’ meeting convened by the state commissioner of police, Ibrahim Gotan, to stem the trend of political violence in the state, he urged political actors to strongly discourage all forms of thuggery, gangsterism, and the recruitment or sponsorship of political thugs.

His words: “Violence and intimidation have no place in a democratic society. Political leaders should caution their supporters against acts that could disrupt public peace and refrain from providing support, encouragement, or protection to individuals who engage in criminal conduct”.

He charged political parties and candidates with ensuring that the police and other relevant security agencies are notified in advance of any rally, campaign, procession, or political gathering, and added that the destruction, defacement, or removal of opponents’ billboards, banners, posters, and other campaign materials must stop.

At the meeting, a political party representative who lamented the absence of the APC and the Accord Party drew his colleagues’ ire when he referred to the absent parties as ‘major political parties’.

The governorship candidate of Boot Party (BP), Chief Masilo Adeleke, insisted that other parties are as major as the two parties, adding that his party will emerge the winner of the contest.

However, political observers believe, at least for now, that the race centres on the candidates of the Accord Party, the incumbent governor, Senator Ademola Adeleke; the All Progressives Congress candidate, Asiwaju Bola Oyebamiji; and the African Democratic Congress candidate, Dr Najeem Salam.

Although the three candidates appear more rooted in the nooks and crannies of the state and have the backing of political chieftains across the state, the Zenith Labour Party (ZLP) candidate, Adefemi Adesuyi, said that Osun people are tired of the ‘so-called major parties’ because they have failed them.

Adesuyi, who promised to improve on the performance of his predecessors, said Osun is endowed with economic and human resources capable of transforming the welfare and infrastructure of the Osun people.

However, all the political parties are strategising on how to win over the Osun electorate to their side by reaching out to various groups and even donating and distributing largesse to woo voters.

In their characteristic manner, these political parties, especially the two frontline parties, the APC and the Accord Party, have continued to point the finger at one another over the spate of violent killings in the state and the alleged plan to rig the election.

The Accord party, through its  secretary, Pastor Victor Akande, accused the All Progressives Congress of planning to rig the election. At the same time, Hon. Wole Oke, the director of the APC campaign committee, insisted that the Accord party was speaking out of frustration at the imminent loss of power.

On the part of the electoral umpire, which has consistently pledged to conduct free, fair and credible elections, the state Resident Electoral Commissioner, Mrs Oluwatoyin Babalola, assured the people of Osun of the Commission’s readiness to conduct elections that meet the highest standards of transparency, integrity and credibility in a peaceful environment.

INEC stated that the new number of eligible voters, 2,339,233, represents a significant increase from the 1,954,800 recorded in the 2023 general election.

The electoral body attributed the increase to sustained voter mobilisation and the conclusion of the 2025/2026 Continuous Voter Registration exercise across the state.

According to the data presented, 395,995 people registered during the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) period, of whom 365,356 were validated after audit.

The commission further recorded 26,202 voters who transferred into Osun from other states, while 7,125 transferred out of the state.

The INEC document said the CVR was conducted in two phases to accommodate applicants across all 30 local government areas and the Ife East area office.

The new registrations, according to INEC, are spread across Osun’s 30 local government areas, 332 registration areas and 3,763 polling units.

The breakdown of new registrations shows Osogbo LGA leading with 22,723 valid new registrations, followed by Irewole with 21,024 and Ede North with 20,529.

At the lower end, Boluwaduro recorded 5,324 valid new registrations, the lowest in the state.

Osun West recorded the highest number, with 130,400 valid new voters across its 10 LGAs. Osun Central followed with 122,837 valid new registrations, while Osun East had 112,119. Meanwhile, INEC’s demographic breakdown of the total eligible voter population shows that a young, economically active population will shape the 2026 election.

Nearly 70 per cent of the eligible voters in Osun are under the age of 50. Voters between the ages of 18 and 34, totalling 857,056 and representing 36.64 per cent of the register, lead the electorate, while those between 35 and 49 years number 772,854, representing 33 per cent of the register voters.

The commission added that voters aged 50 to 69 number 488,052, while those aged 70 and above number 221,271, representing 9.46 per cent of the total.

In the occupational data, students make up the largest bloc with 752,800 voters. They are followed by traders with 483,970 voters and artisans with 320,416 voters. Other categories include business owners at 265,370, farmers and fishers at 187,312 and civil servants at 115,158.

While INEC is collating data to ensure a free, fair and credible election, a political analyst, Dr Kola Adebisi, expressed apprehension about vote buying, which allegedly characterised the recent governorship election in Ekiti State.

He regretted that politicians are weaponising poverty to achieve their nefarious targets, adding that the issue of vote buying must be addressed nationwide for true democracy to prevail in the country.

In preparation for the election, both local and international election observers, along with civil society organisations, have continued to emphasise the importance of a free, fair and credible election in Osun State.

These bodies have continued to emphasise the need for an impartial electoral umpire and security agencies that would give the electorate assurance that their votes will count come 15 August 2026.

Apparently perturbed by the growing waves of political violence in the state, a civil organisation, Kimpact Development Initiative (KDI), called on election stakeholders to take urgent, visible, and coordinated steps to de-escalate tension and protect the credibility of the electoral process.

The executive director of KDI, Bukola Idowu, tasked political parties, candidates, campaign councils, youth groups, security agencies, INEC, traditional and religious institutions, the media, civil society, and all citizens to be committed to peaceful election before, during and after the election.

Osun residents are looking forward to a free, fair, credible, and, most importantly, peaceful election that will sustain democracy in Osun State.