2023 Election Shows Governors Don’t Decide Votes — Aregbesola

Rauf Aregbesola, national secretary of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), says the outcome of the 2023 presidential election has shown that governors do not determine electoral results.

Aregbesola made the assertion on Tuesday in Abuja while speaking at the public presentation of The Loyalist, a book written by Bolaji Abdullahi, national publicity secretary of the ADC.

According to the former Osun State governor, election results from the South-West and South-East regions contradicted the long-held belief that governors can deliver votes against the will of the electorate.

His comments come amid a wave of defections to the All Progressives Congress (APC) by governors elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Those who have defected include Umo Eno of Akwa Ibom, Sheriff Oborevwori of Delta, Peter Mbah of Enugu, Douye Diri of Bayelsa, Agbu Kefas of Taraba, Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers and Caleb Mutfwang of Plateau. Several lawmakers, former governors, ex-ministers and party leaders have also joined the ruling party.

Reacting to concerns that the defections signal a drift toward a one-party state, Aregbesola urged the APC to focus on guaranteeing free, fair and credible elections in 2027.

“Something is going on that is worrisome, especially for those of us who are democrats or aspire to be democrats,” he said.

“I laugh because statistics from the last election do not support the belief that governors can impose electoral outcomes.”

He noted that the APC controlled all South-West states except one during the 2023 elections but recorded a maximum performance of 55 percent in the region, with opposition parties sharing the remaining votes.

Aregbesola added that the same pattern played out in Lagos State, where the APC presidential candidate, Bola Tinubu, lost his ward, local government area and the state.

Describing the South-East results as even more revealing, he said the APC secured only 5.8 percent of the total votes from the zone.

“So when it is claimed that governors win elections against the people’s will — where?” he asked.

“The results clearly show that governors do not win elections; the people do.”

He stressed that the credibility of future elections depends on the commitment of electoral authorities to fairness and transparency.

“Commit to a free and fair election, and let us see what the result will be,” he added.