Supreme Court Affirms Okpebholo’s Victory, Throws Out Ighodalo’s Appeal

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The Supreme Court of Nigeria has dismissed the appeal filed by Dr. Asue Ighodalo and the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, challenging the victory of Governor Monday Okpebholo at the September 21, 2024, Edo State governorship election.

Justice Garba Lawal, who delivered the judgement, dismissed the appeal for want of merit.

Ighodalo, through his lawyer, Ken Mozia, senior advocate of Nigeria, SAN, had asked the Supreme Court to sack Governor Okpebholo and declare him the winner of the fiercely contested election.

Though the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, had declared Okpebholo, candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, winner with 291,667 votes against Ighodalo’s 247,274 votes and Labour Party’s Olumide Akpata with 22,763 votes, Ighodalo told the court he won majority of the lawful votes, alleging manipulation.

The election umpire, INEC, represented by Kanu Agabi, SAN, had asked the court to dismiss the appeal in its entirety.

Agabi argued that Ighodalo and the PDP had, in their petition, stigmatised the exercise as invalid and unlawful on the grounds of non-compliance with the Electoral Act 2022, contending that having declared the election unlawful and illegal, Ighodalo and the PDP cannot turn around and ask the court to declare them the winners of an illegality.

Accusing Ighodalo and his party of being inconsistent in their grievances against the election, INEC prayed the court to dismiss for lacking in merit.

Recall that the Court of Appeal, Abuja Division, had on May 29, 2025, affirmed Governor Okpebholo’s victory as declared by INEC in the appeal brought before it by Ighodalo.

In a unanimous judgement, the three-member Court of Appeal, led by Justice Mohammed Danjuma, held that Ighodalo’s appeal was unmeritorious and consequently dismissed it.
The appellate court stated that Ighodalo and the PDP failed to demonstrate that the election tribunal erred in its decision and proceeded to affirm the tribunal’s judgement.

Ighodalo, however, rejected the judgement and headed for the Supreme Court which has now laid the matter to rest by endorsing Okpebholo’s victory.