The United States has praised the peaceful nature of the September 21 governorship election in Edo State.
In a statement, U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria, Richard Mills, commended the people of Edo for conducting themselves in an orderly manner during the election. He also urged calm after the results were announced, which saw Monday Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC) declared the winner.
“The U.S. Mission in Nigeria applauds the peaceful conduct of the gubernatorial election in Edo on September 21 and urges for calm following the announcement of the results,” the statement read.
Ambassador Mills also commended Governor Godwin Obaseki for calling for peace and urged all involved to support the electoral process. He emphasized the importance of transparency and due process in maintaining trust in democratic systems.
“We commend Governor Obaseki’s call for peace and encourage all stakeholders, including INEC, to uphold established processes and respect legal avenues for challenging results,” he said.
Mills reiterated the U.S.’s commitment to supporting free, fair, and transparent elections in Nigeria.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) announced that Okpebholo secured 291,667 votes, defeating his closest opponent, Asue Ighodalo of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who received 247,274 votes. Labour Party candidate Olumide Akpata finished third with 22,763 votes.
