President Tinubu Calls for Peaceful Off-Cycle State Elections

President Bola Tinubu called for peaceful and transparent conduct of off-cycle governorship elections in Ekiti and Osun states during a televised Democracy Day broadcast on June 12. He urged the Independent National Electoral Commission, security agencies, and political parties to ensure credibility, warning that democracy fails when citizens doubt the electoral process. The Ekiti election is set for June 20, and the Osun election is scheduled for August 15.

Simultaneously, the All Progressives Congress (APC) began strategic planning for the 2027 general elections. During a meeting at the Presidential Lodge in Abeokuta, Governor Dapo Abiodun pledged that Ogun State would deliver 95 percent of its votes to President Tinubu, citing the administration's economic reforms as justification for a second term.

Abiodun also announced party zoning decisions for the Ogun governorship race. The deputy governor position has been zoned to the Ijebu-Ode Federal Constituency in the Ogun East Senatorial District to complement governorship candidate Senator Solomon Adeola of Ogun West. Abiodun noted that Adeola's candidacy ends a 50-year period during which Ogun West had not produced a governorship candidate. Additionally, the governor committed to implementing technology-driven security solutions to combat kidnapping and banditry in the state.