The Edo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, sitting in Abuja, has dismissed the petition filed by the Social Democratic Party challenging the election of Governor Monday Okpebholo.
The tribunal, led by Justice Wilfred Kpochi, concluded its proceedings on Tuesday after the SDP formally withdrew its petition.
During the resumed hearing, the SDP’s legal representative informed the tribunal that the party had decided to discontinue the case. There were no objections from the Independent National Electoral Commission, Governor Okpebholo, or the All Progressives Congress, prompting Justice Kpochi to dismiss the petition with a brief ruling.
The SDP was one of six political parties that initially contested INEC’s declaration of Okpebholo as the winner of the September 21, 2024, governorship election. INEC’s results showed the APC candidate securing 291,667 votes, defeating 17 other contenders, including his closest rival, Asue Ighodalo of the Peoples Democratic Party, who garnered 247,274 votes.
Other political parties that had filed petitions included the PDP, Zenith Labour Party, Action Democratic Party, Accord Party, and the Allied Peoples’ Movement.
The SDP’s petition argued that the election violated provisions of the Electoral Act and INEC’s guidelines. The party claimed that INEC’s failure to electronically transmit polling unit results rendered the votes allocated to the APC invalid and called for Okpebholo’s victory to be annulled.
With the official withdrawal of the petition, the SDP’s challenge to Governor Okpebholo’s election has now been resolved.
“I have received instructions from the National Secretariat of the SDP to withdraw the matter,” Ehiavhie stated
