#OsunDecides2026: Women struggle for visibility with one flagbearer, one deputy in race

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More than two million people are eligible to vote in Saturday’s Osun governorship election. The state has 2,339,233 registered voters across its 3,763 polling units and 30 local government areas.

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While this marks a 19.67 per cent rise from the 2022 election, it remains to be seen whether the increase will reflect in voter turnout on election day. 

In this governorship race, women’s participation remains severely limited, consistent with the historical trend in a state where no woman has been elected governor since the state’s creation in 1991, as in other states across the country.

Of the 15 candidates vying for the state’s highest elective seat (even before the withdrawal of the APGA candidate, Adesina Adeyemi-Doro), there is only one female candidate and one deputy governorship candidate.

For this election and the two prior elections, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) did not disclose data on the gender distribution of registered voters.

In Nigerian elections, there are often no female candidates or very few women contestants. Since the creation of Osun State in 1991 by the military government of General Ibrahim Babangida, all the governors have been male. However, two women have been elected and served as deputy governors – Olusola Obada (2003 to 2010) and Titilayo Laoye-Tomori (2010 to 2018).

According to the document published by the electoral umpire, Yemisi Adeagbo, a former school principal, is the governorship candidate of the Action Democratic Party (ADP), while Atanda Babatunde is listed as her running mate.

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Following Ms Adeagbo’s announcement, she assured that if elected, her administration would “move the state from its current position to a model state that others across the federation will look up to as an example of purposeful governance.” 

She said that the ADP remains “the only truly people-oriented party, built on solid structures, free from internal crises, and driven by service rather than personal ambition.”

She vowed that the party would demonstrate its strength at the polls and emerge victorious.

Aside from Mrs Adeagbo, the only other woman among thEx-Deputy Governor Titilayo Laoye-Tomorie candidates is Temitope Agiri of the African Democratic Congress (ADC). She is the running mate to the party’s gubernatorial candidate, Najeem Salaam, a former State House of Assembly Speaker.

Owing to her loyalty to the party and widespread acceptance among party members across the state, Ms Agiri, who comes from Ila-Orangun in the Ila Local Government Area, was described as the most suitable choice. The party stated that picking Ms Agiri, given her gender and track record as a grassroots politician, would enhance its prospects in the election.  

The situation in 2026 is not too different from that of 2022, but was better in 2018.

In the last gubernatorial election in Osun in 2022, there were no female candidates out of the 15 contestants. Meanwhile, six female deputy governorship candidates were in the race.

To succeed Rauf Aregbesola in the September 2018 election, 48 candidates were cleared by INEC to contest, including four female candidates. The women candidates include Adebisi Rufai of the Allied Congress Party of Nigeria (ACPN), Hannah Jegede of the Nigeria Elements Progressive Party (NEPP), Mercy Ayodele of the Restoration Party (RP), and Adebayo Rasheedat of Peoples Alliance for National Development and Liberty (PANDEL).

The 2018 election had at least 16 female deputy candidates.

In the lead-up to various voting periods, diverse political entities, legislative figures, and advocacy organisations have championed legal reforms to bolster female representation in government. Despite these efforts, numerous proposals have encountered significant parliamentary resistance or lacked the necessary political momentum to move beyond the deliberation stage.

Based on current electoral dynamics, it is unlikely that the woman candidate will cause a significant political upset. The race is shaping up to be a direct contest between the incumbent governor, Ademola Adeleke (Accord Party), and Bola Oyebamiji (All Progressives Congress), with Mr Salaam of the ADC also emerging as a “third-force” challenger.

The PDP debacle

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which won the 2022 election, has no candidate in this election. According to INEC, only 15 parties completed their primaries and uploaded the names and particulars of their candidates, including running mates, within the stipulated deadline. Despite securing victory in the 2022 Osun governorship election, the PDP failed to qualify for the contest.

READ ALSO: OsunDecides2026: APC’s governorship candidate Oyebamiji arrives Osogbo as party gears up for final campaign

Initially, the party appeared prepared to defend its seat, with Mr Adeleke having already purchased nomination forms and successfully cleared the preliminary screening stages. However, the process was disrupted by the party’s national leadership crisis, which led to the suspension and counter-suspension of key officials responsible for supervising primaries and transmitting candidates’ names to INEC.

The internal crisis prompted the governor to leave the party and join the Accord Party to pursue a second term.

Expert speaks

Jide Ojo, a development consultant, described Nigeria’s inability to produce a female governor as an age-long challenge that is rooted in patriarchy.

The public affairs analyst described the situation as a “very sad commentary on Nigerian democratic sojourn.” He noted that he anticipated President Bola Tinubu would implement the gender policy, showcasing a commitment to women similar to the support he has shown for his wife. Oluremi Tinubu, the First Lady of Nigeria, served three terms in the Nigerian Senate, having served the Lagos Central Senatorial District from 2011 to 2023.

Mr Ojo, however, noted that advocacy and constitution-backed affirmative action would bring this to the barest minimum.

He said the absence of women at the ballot is largely due to the political system.

“For political parties like PDP, APC, APGA, ADC, NDC, none of them has a significant number of women in their National Working Committee or State Working Committees,” Mr Ojo said. “And that’s where it should ordinarily start.”