The All Progressives Congress (APC) has secured a landslide victory in the Benue State local government elections held on Saturday, winning all 23 chairmanship positions and 276 councillorship seats.
The elections were conducted by the Benue State Independent Electoral Commission (BSIEC). Announcing the results on Sunday at the commission’s headquarters in Makurdi, BSIEC Chairman Mr. Richard Tombowua confirmed the APC’s clean sweep, which was contested by five out of the eight political parties that had initially expressed interest.
Tombowua noted that the elections were largely peaceful, with no major incidents reported, except for a brief hostage situation involving a BSIEC official in Otukpo Local Government Area. Fortunately, police intervention ensured the official’s safe return.
“The APC won all 23 local government chairmanship positions and all 276 councillorship positions in the election,” Tombowua stated. He mentioned that eight political parties initially indicated interest in the elections, but only five—APC, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Social Democratic Party (SDP), Labour Party (LP), and All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA)—participated.
He also explained that the delay in announcing results was due to logistical challenges in collating votes across the state, but reiterated BSIEC’s commitment to conducting peaceful, free, fair, and credible elections.
In reaction to the outcome, Mr. Ibrahim Idoko, State Chairman of the Labour Party and Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC), praised BSIEC for its efforts in ensuring a credible election. Similarly, Mr. Benjamin Omale, State Chairman of the APC, commended the electoral body and expressed gratitude to Governor Hyacinth Alia for providing a level playing field for all parties during the electoral process.