In an article written by Wale Akinselure, the victory of Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State in the recently concluded governorship election is discussed. Despite facing various challenges and obstacles leading up to the election, Governor Makinde emerged as the winner with a commanding 64.45% of the valid votes cast, defeating his closest opponent, Folarin Teslim of the All Progressives Congress (APC), by 307,071 votes.
One of the major obstacles Governor Makinde faced was the internal crises within the Oyo State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Many party members were aggrieved, and some had even left the party. In an effort to address these issues, Governor Makinde held consultative meetings with stakeholders in each of the seven geopolitical zones of the state. Although he was able to reconcile with some aggrieved members, others remained dissatisfied. Additionally, there were concerns that Governor Makinde’s seeming opaque stance regarding his preferred presidential candidate would backfire, which may have contributed to the poor performance of the PDP in the February 25 election in the state.
However, in the final days leading up to the election, Governor Makinde and his team launched a massive campaign effort that utilized both mainstream and digital media platforms to market his achievements and seek support from voters. He was also able to secure endorsements from elder statesmen, religious leaders, and top politicians. On election day, Governor Makinde’s victory was announced, and he became only the second governor in the history of the state to win a second term.
As Governor Makinde begins his second term in office, the people of Oyo State will be looking to him to continue delivering on his promises of sustainable development. It remains to be seen whether he will be able to sustain his present foothold on the state ahead of the 2027 elections, with politicians who lost out this time expected to align and realign to better their political fortunes.
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