Edo guber: APC names Idahosa running mate to Okpebholo

The All Progressives Congress, APC, national body has named Dennis Idahosa as its running mate in the September 21 governorship election.

Idahosa will be deputizing the party’s governorship candidate, Senator Monday Okpebholo.

This ends the crisis generated following the conduct of the party’s primaries for the gubernatorial election.

Recall that the primary election conducted on 17 February produced three different winners.

Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State, who was chairman of the election committee, had announced that Idahosa won with 40,453 votes, and Monday Okpebholo was first runner up with 100 votes.

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At a parallel election, Okpebholo was also pronounced winner with over 12,000 votes, just as another aspirant Anamero Dekeri, was also pronounced winner of the same election.

Following an uproar, the party declared the primary election inconclusive and ordered a repeat of the election on 22 February, chaired by the Governor of Cross River, Bassey Otu.

The new primary election eventually produced Okpebholo as winner with 12,433 votes and Dennis Idahosa coming second with 6,541 votes.

Not satisfied with the result declared by the party’s electoral committee, Idahosa wrote the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, asking it not to recognize Okpebholo as APC’s candidate.

He also headed to a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja to challenge his party’s decision to conduct a fresh election, a suit that is still ongoing.

But, the party’s national leadership at a meeting held overnight, finally resolved the logjam by naming Idahosa as running mate to Okpebholo.