By: Fabian Apechihin
Abuja | July 10, 2025 — The Supreme Court of Nigeria on Thursday upheld the election of Senator Monday Okpebholo as Governor of Edo State, dismissing the appeal filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate, Asue Ighodalo.
Delivering the lead judgment, Justice Lawal Garba, who headed a five-member panel of the apex court, held that the appellants failed to substantiate their allegations of over-voting, non-compliance with the Electoral Act, and other irregularities they cited in contesting Okpebholo’s victory.
In a unanimous decision, the court ruled that Ighodalo did not demonstrate that he was validly elected by the majority of lawful votes cast. The panel observed that the PDP’s challenge focused on only 395 out of 4,519 polling units, which the court found insufficient to impact the outcome of the election.
Furthermore, the apex court noted that the 19 witnesses presented by the PDP during the tribunal proceedings failed to significantly advance the party’s case.
The court emphasized that no compelling or admissible evidence was provided to justify overturning the decisions of the lower courts. Consequently, the appeal was dismissed for lacking merit.
Lower Court Judgments Aligned
The Supreme Court ruling aligns with earlier decisions by the Edo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal and the Court of Appeal, Abuja Division, which had both affirmed Okpebholo’s electoral victory.
- On May 29, 2025, the Court of Appeal unanimously dismissed Ighodalo’s appeal, describing it as lacking substance.
- On April 2, 2025, the Tribunal, led by Justice Wilfred Kpochi, also unanimously dismissed the PDP’s petition, citing the petitioners’ failure to prove allegations of electoral malpractices.
Allegations Raised and Evidence Presented
In their petition marked EPT/ED/GOV/02/2024, the PDP and Ighodalo alleged widespread irregularities, including:
- Over-voting in several polling units
- Non-serialization of ballot papers
- Incorrect collation of figures
- Erroneous computation of results in 765 polling units
- General non-compliance with the Electoral Act
They also accused the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of deploying untracked sensitive materials, claiming this facilitated rigging in favor of the APC and Okpebholo.
During the trial, the petitioners called 19 witnesses and subpoenaed a Senior Technical Officer from INEC’s ICT Department, who presented 154 BVAS machines from 133 polling units to support their over-voting claims.
However, INEC did not call any witnesses, while Okpebholo (2nd respondent) called one witness, and the APC (3rd respondent) presented four witnesses before closing their case.
Despite these efforts, the tribunal and subsequent appellate courts found that the petitioners failed to provide convincing evidence to warrant nullifying the election.
Final Verdict
The Supreme Court’s judgment effectively ends all legal challenges to Governor Monday Okpebholo’s election, confirming him as the duly elected leader of Edo State.
