Osun State Governor and Accord candidate, Ademola Adeleke, has won the hard-fought 2026 governorship election in the state, earning a second term in office and defeating his nearest challenger, Bola Oyebamiji of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) announced Adeleke as the duly elected candidate on Sunday morning, August 16, following the election held across the 30 local government areas (LGAs) of the state on Saturday, August 15. Among the 30 LGAs, Adeleke captured 19, while APC’s Oyebamiji picked up the remaining 11.

According to official results announced by the state returning officer for INEC, Prof. Joshua Ogunwole, Adeleke polled 511,067 votes, while the APC candidate scored 444,815 votes, as the African Democratic Congress (ADC) candidate, Najeem Salaam, finished a distant third with 17,180 votes, despite the ADC presidential candidate and former Vice-President, Atiku Abubakar, and former Osun governor, Rauf Aregbesola, campaigning with him on Monday, August 10.

pic.twitter.com/GRwHxypB7U

— Atiku Abubakar (@atiku) August 10, 2026

In spite of the spate of tensions and violence that preceded the election, it saw a relatively impressive turnout of 43.20%, with 1,010,684 voters coming out to cast their ballots out of 2,339,544 registered voters.

The buildup to the election was particularly heated, with reports of politically motivated killings and death threats from political figures. According to the Pre-Election Security Risk Assessment (ESRA) by the Kimpact Development Initiative (KDI), no fewer than 73 election-related violent incidents resulting in 29 deaths were recorded between January and July 2026.

On Wednesday, August 12, Senator Francis Fadahunsi, the senatorial candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for Osun East, honoured an invitation to the Osun State Police Command for questioning after a video surfaced of him appearing to ask party faithful to kill Accord party members. His media office described the comments as a “political metaphor” for defeating Accord at the polls, while the senator himself claimed the video was AI-generated in a strange television interview.

This was a statement by Senator Fadahunsi now on video. Translation

"From now on, whenever you see Accord members, kill them. I authorise you to kill them. They have wives and children too. This is a Federal Government election. On election day, even if they come with voters… pic.twitter.com/67HlMmfS6K

— Davido (@davido) August 11, 2026

OSUN 2026: “The ‘Kill Accord’ video posted by Davido is an AI video” ~ Senator Fadahunsi denies asking APC members to kill Accord members. pic.twitter.com/V86sQWRozO

— Nifemi Oguntoye🇳🇬 (@nifemioguntoye) August 12, 2026

Davido, whose uncle is Adeleke, was also a main character in the pre- and post-election controversies, with the singer often making claims about attempts to rig the poll against his uncle. Last Tuesday, August 11, particularly, he called on United States President Donald Trump to interfere in the political situation in Osun, drawing a mix of support and mockery.

A CALL FOR ATTENTION TO PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP

President Donald Trump, I am calling your attention to the situation in Osun State, Nigeria, as we approach the election.

There are growing concerns about tension and the possibility of violence, intimidation, or disruption of the…

— Davido (@davido) August 11, 2026