He Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is set to commence the compilation and announcement of the final results of Saturday’s Bayelsa State gubernatorial election.
On Saturday, the commission had postponed the exercise until Sunday, since at that time only the result of one of the eight local administrations of the federal state was ready.
INEC Returning Officer Farouk Kuta, during a briefing with journalists at the commission’s state headquarters in Yenagoa, the state capital, on Saturday night, said compilation could not begin because he was not sure whether the results from other areas of local government would be ready. Before midnight.
Consequently, he postponed the snack until Sunday at 10 a.m.
A total of 16 candidates, including two women, contested the off-cycle gubernatorial election in Bayelsa State on Saturday. Kogi and Imo states were the other two states where gubernatorial elections were held simultaneously on Saturday.
However, analysts say the Bayelsa State gubernatorial election is a two-horse race between the incumbent Governor Douye Diri and the former governor of the state, Timipre Sylva.
Diri, who is seeking a second term, is running on the platform of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), while Sylva is the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
According to the electoral commission, 1,017,613 out of a total of 1,056,862 registered voters collected their Permanent Voter Cards (PVC). Only those with their PVC had the right to vote in Saturday’s elections.
Voters cast their ballots at 2,242 designated polling units spread across the oil-rich state on Saturday.
Newslodge earlier provided updates on results from polling units in the eight local government areas of the state.
Now that the compilation has reached the final stage, we will provide real-time local government area results updates as they are announced by INEC.
The meeting was attended by the state resident electoral commissioner, Obo Efanga, two INEC national commissioners and the state police commissioner.
