THE Returning Officer of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Edoba Omoregie, has declared the candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, the winner of the November 8 governorship election.
Prof Soludo won in all the 21 local government areas in the state. He got a total of 422,664 votes to defeat his closest rival, the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Mr Nicholas Ukachukwu, who scored 99,445 votes. The candidate of the Young Progressives Party (YPP), Sir Paul Chukwuma, came third with 37,753 votes.
According to Prof Omoregie, there were 2,788,864 registered voters, out of which 598,229 were accredited. About 595,298 votes were cast, just as 11,244 votes were rejected across the 21 local government areas.
READ ALSO: Anambra: Soludo poised for victory, but popularity isn’t the reason
“The number of registered voters was 2,788,864, while accredited voters were 598,229. The total valid votes stood at 584,054, rejected votes were 11,244, and the total votes cast amounted to 595,298,” said Prof Omoregie.
“After collating the results as tallied into Form EC8E, it is now my privilege to declare the figures each candidate scored according to their political parties,” he noted.
“There were a few areas affected by incidents, leading to cancellations in some wards across Anambra West, Anaocha, Awka South, and Onitsha South LGAs, amounting to 10,481 affected votes. However, the margin of lead between the top candidates did not affect the overall outcome of the election.”
How Economy Post called the election
Economy Post had earlier predicted that Prof Soludo would win the election – but not necessarily due to his popularity in the state. Read the story here. The newspaper had predicted that the first reason for his victory was that none of the 15 candidates came close to his grassroots base, fuelled by the incumbency factor..
Secondly, the newspaper also predicated the incumbent governor’s victory on the fact that Anambra is an APGA state. Citizens of the state are yet to accept the All Progressives Congress (APC), which leaves Candidate Nicholas Ukachukwu in a difficult position. The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is dead in Anambra, like it is at the national level. This leaves Candidate Jude Ezenwafor in a tough position.
READ ALSO: Truth under fire: The multi-front assault on facts during 2023 Nigerian election
George Moghalu (Labour Party), Paul Chukwuma (YPP) and John Nwosu (African Democratic Congress) are in good political parties, but they have no grassroots support in the state.
“I don’t expect an upset,” a political analyst, Mr Richard Etiebet, had told Economy Post earlier.
“The only candidate who could have given Soludo some tough time is Ifeanyi Uba. He won the Senate with a minor Young Progressives Party (YPP). He could have been a formidable candidate, but, unfortunately, he is dead. As for others, I would be pleasantly surprised if there is an upset. But I predict Soludo’s victory.”
Prof Soludo has not really lived up to expectations. Insecurity worsened under the former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor’s tenure, with multiple taxes becoming the order of the day. On October 2, 2025, the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) said: “We used to have a consolidated tax system, but now additional levies such as business premises charges, land use fees, and local government council dues have been introduced. The burden is becoming unbearable, and while we are still engaging with the government, we hope for a resolution soon.”
Seven months ago, traders had protested the high burden of exorbitant fees, levies, and rates imposed on them by the state government. They did so during a sensitisation campaign at Onitsha Main Market under the Tax for Service (T4S) project, which was implemented by the Social and Integral Development Centre (SIDEC) in collaboration with the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC). The project was funded by Oxfam Nigeria.
“The economy is already bad, and many traders have been forced out of the market. The government should provide loans instead of imposing heavy levies,” said a woman trader of Ochanja Central Market, Ms Kate Uchebechi.
Up till now, traders in Onitsha Main Market, Ochanja and other major markets still observe sit-at-homes on Monday. The traders told Economy Post that they were still observing it because they could be attacked if they opened their shops that day. Yet, the government of Anambra State under Prof Soludo was not able to assure traders of maximum security should they open their shops on Mondays. For context, the exercise ceased in Awka, the state capital, which was positive news but continued in Onitsha.
