OsunDecides2026: APC Poised To Reclaim Governorship Seat, Says Senator Bamidele

The All Progressives Congress (APC) is better positioned to defeat Governor Ademola Adeleke in Saturday’s Osun State governorship election, Senate Leader and Chairman of the South-West Caucus in the National Assembly, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele, has said.

Bamidele made the assertion in a statement ahead of the election, urging the state’s 2.339 million registered voters across 30 local government areas, 332 wards and 3,763 polling units to carefully consider the candidates and vote for the person capable of serving their collective interests.

He described the election as a defining moment for the people of Osun, saying its outcome would have implications for the state’s governance and development over the next four years and beyond.

According to him, the electioneering process had demonstrated the essence of democracy by giving candidates the opportunity to present their records and manifestos while allowing voters to determine who should govern them.

“This is the beauty of democracy across the universe. On the one hand, it allows office seekers to present themselves to the people, indeed the electorate, who occupy the exalted seat of the ultimate judge in every democracy. On the other hand, it gives the people the power to determine who governs or leads them based on their public records,” Bamidele said.

He urged all candidates and political parties to accept the authority of the electorate and abide by the Constitution and electoral laws, stressing that political actors must prioritise peace before, during and after the election.

“This should be a hard lesson for all political actors that the power to decide still lies in the hands of the people and not in the incumbent,” he said.

The APC leader said the contest was now primarily between the incumbent governor, Adeleke, and the APC candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, while arguing that the APC had strengthened its political structure since its defeat in the 2022 election.

Bamidele attributed the APC’s improved position to what he described as greater internal cohesion and preparedness, dismissing Adeleke’s allegation that the party was relying on federal might to defeat him.

“Unlike 2022, Osun APC is now more cohesive and prepared not just to regain the political control of the state, but also to reposition it for posterity,” he said.

Read Also: APC Will Accept Peoples Verdict In Osun – Ajibola Bashiru

He argued that the internal challenges within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which provided the platform for Adeleke’s 2022 victory, had weakened the governor’s political structure.

According to Bamidele, the development became more complicated after the faction of the PDP associated with Adeleke lost its legal battle over control of the party and recognition by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), leading the governor to seek re-election on the platform of the Accord Party.

The senator said the strength of a political party in an election was determined by its political capital, grassroots organisation and sustained relationship with voters rather than merely by incumbency.

“Structure, in this sense, does not directly translate to incumbency. Rather, it is about the political capital a political party has been able to build over time,” he said.

He added that political structure was also about “confidence or deep-seated trust the people have sustainably invested in their preferred political parties” and the influence parties command across different levels of society.

Bamidele questioned whether Accord could mobilise sufficient political capital to secure Adeleke’s re-election, arguing that the party had a limited electoral history in Osun State.

He acknowledged that remnants of the PDP remained aligned with Adeleke but questioned whether they could overcome the political influence of former Governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola and other political actors who, according to him, had moved their support towards the APC.

The senator also cited defections by some lawmakers and former political allies of Adeleke as evidence of what he described as a shrinking support base for the governor.

He specifically mentioned Senator Francis Fadahunsi, representing Osun East, who recently joined the APC, as well as three members of the House of Representatives — Omirin Olusanya, Wole Oke and Taofeek Ajilesoro — whom he said had also moved away from the governor’s political camp.

Bamidele said the lawmakers had established grassroots structures in their constituencies and that their movement to the APC had strengthened the party ahead of Saturday’s election.

He also rejected Adeleke’s claim that the APC was using the influence of the Federal Government to secure victory in the state.

He cited President Bola Tinubu’s intervention following the restriction of the Osun State Government’s statutory allocation account by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), arguing that the President’s action demonstrated neutrality.

Bamidele also pointed to the President’s directive to security agencies to avoid professional misconduct before, during and after the election as evidence of the Federal Government’s commitment to a peaceful and credible process.

“From all indications, the President has been fair to all parties in the interest of peace and stability,” he said.

He urged all political parties to focus on their manifestos and avoid actions capable of threatening the peace of the state, stressing that the outcome of the election would ultimately be determined by Osun voters.

“In the end, it is the people, not the federal government, that will determine who will govern them,” Bamidele said.

He said the APC’s prospects should be assessed against the party’s current level of organisation rather than its defeat in 2022, when its candidate, Gboyega Oyetola, lost his re-election bid to Adeleke despite the APC controlling the Federal Government.

According to Bamidele, the 2022 outcome was largely influenced by internal divisions within the APC, which he argued had since been addressed.

“It is all about political institutions and strength, not about individuals or sentiments,” he said.

The senator called on the people of Osun State to exercise their franchise peacefully and urged all political actors to respect the outcome of the electoral process.