- Supreme court upheld tribunal and appeal court rulings affirming Monday Okpebholo’s election as Edo state governor.
- The apex court ruling ends all pending legal disputes over the 2024 Edo governorship election results.
The supreme court has confirmed the election of the governor of Edo state, Monday Okpebholo.
A five-member panel of the apex court, led by justice Mohammed Garba, gave the verdict on Thursday.
The court dismissed an appeal filed by the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Asue Ighodalo, as “lacking in merit”.
Garba said the PDP and its candidate failed to convince the court that the election was flawed.
He said: “The appeal is hereby dismissed for lacking in merit and the judgement affirms the decision of the tribunal and court of appeal.”
The panel held that the appellants could not establish that Okpebholo won through unlawful votes.
The Independent National Electoral Commission had declared Okpebholo winner of the September 21, 2024, poll.
Ighodalo had gone to the tribunal to challenge the outcome, citing irregularities and alleged rigging.
Both the tribunal and the court of appeal dismissed his petition for lacking credible evidence.
The PDP’s candidate then took the matter to the apex court as the final legal option.
He insisted the election was marred by manipulation and wanted the court to void it.
But the supreme court stood by the earlier judgements, saying Ighodalo’s claims had no strong legal backing.
The ruling brings to a close months of legal battle over the governorship race.