The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared Amajirionwu Blyden Okanni of the All Progressives Congress (APC) the winner of the just-concluded state assembly by-election into the Ngor-Okpala constituency of Imo State.
Ameh Dennis Akor, a Professor of Drama and Critical Theory from Alex Ekwueme Federal University Ndufu-Alike, Ebonyi state, and the returning officer, announced the results at Umuneke in the Council Headquarters of Ngor-Okpala LGA on Sunday morning.
He said that the APC candidate of polled 9 248 to defeat Jeff Nwachukwu of the PDP who polled 7 071 votes.
He stated that the total registered voters across the 11 existing electoral wards in the area was 94,060, and the total number of accredited voters was 18 083, noting that polling commenced as early as 8:30a.m and ended at about 2:30p.m, noting that all accredited voters with Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) cast their votes.
The election results were published, displayed and transmitted electronically using the forms EC60E and EC8A through the INEC’s portal.
He further stated that the number of total votes cast was 17 862 and the total number of valid votes was 17 280 with rejected votes being 582.
He commended the efforts of security agencies especially the Commissioner of Police in Imo State, CP Rabiu Hussaini and all stakeholders who participated before, during and after the elections for their maturity and understanding.
No fewer than eleven registered political parties participated in the election.
The parties included the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), All Progressives Congress (APC), All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and Labour Party (LP).
Others were the Young Progressives Party (YPP), Zenith Labour Party (ZLP), National Rescue Movement (NRM), New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Allied People’s Movement (APM), Action Democratic Party (ADP) and the Social Democratic Party (SDP).
