The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says voting has commenced smoothly across Osun State, with 3,556 of the state’s 3,763 polling units opened as of 8:30 a.m. on Saturday.
The commission disclosed this in a post on its official X account on Saturday while giving an update on the conduct of the governorship election.
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According to INEC, the figure represents 94.5 per cent of the total polling units in the state.
It said the remaining 207 polling units, representing 5.5 per cent, experienced minor delays but had all become operational by 9 a.m.
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RAC activation completed
INEC also said the Registration Area Centre (RAC) activation exercise for the election was completed at 6:09 p.m. on Friday.
“RAC activation was successfully completed (100%) at 6:09 p.m. yesterday in preparation for the Osun State Governorship Election,” the commission said.
The commission described the deployment and opening process as peaceful and orderly.
“The RAC activation and polling unit opening processes were conducted in a peaceful, orderly, and timely manner,” INEC said.
The development comes as voters across the state elect a governor for another four-year term in a contest involving 14 candidates.
Incumbent Governor Ademola Adeleke is seeking re-election on the platform of the Accord Party, while the All Progressives Congress (APC) is challenging him with Bola Oyebamiji, a former Osun commissioner for finance and former chief executive officer of the National Inland Waterways Authority as its candidate.
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) candidate is Najeem Salaam, a former Speaker of the Osun State House of Assembly.
The election has been preceded by political realignments and concerns over possible violence, with observers identifying the contest largely as a battle between the ruling Accord and the APC, despite the participation of 14 political parties.
READ ALSO: #OsunDecide2026: ADC candidate, Najeem Salaam, alleges voter intimidation in Ifewara
The Osun chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which has no candidate in the election, adopted Mr Adeleke for the poll and directed its structures across the state to support his re-election on the Accord platform.
The election is taking place against the backdrop of the 2022 governorship contest in which Mr Adeleke defeated the then-incumbent Gboyega Oyetola.
INEC’s latest update indicates that, despite initial delays in some polling units, the opening process was substantially completed within the first hour of voting.
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