The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja has upheld the election of Monday Okpebholo as Governor of Edo State, dismissing the petition brought by Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Asue Ighodalo, who has vowed to challenge the verdict at the Supreme Court.

In a unanimous decision delivered on Thursday, a three-member panel of the appellate court, led by Justice Mohammed Danjuma, ruled that Ighodalo’s appeal lacked merit. The court affirmed the earlier judgment of the Edo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, which had dismissed Ighodalo’s petition.

The tribunal, in its April 2025 ruling, held that Ighodalo and other petitioners—including the Accord Party—failed to provide credible evidence to support their claims of non-compliance with the Electoral Act. The panel, headed by Justice Wilfred Kpochi, noted that the petitioners did not call polling unit officers, presiding officers, or voters as witnesses—an omission deemed fatal to their case.

Following the tribunal’s dismissal, Ighodalo proceeded to the Court of Appeal in a bid to overturn the outcome, but the appellate court upheld the tribunal’s ruling, paving the way for Okpebholo’s continued tenure as governor.

In the 21 September 2024 governorship election, Okpebholo, candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), polled 291,667 votes to defeat the PDP’s Ighodalo, who garnered 247,274 votes. Olumide Akpata of the Labour Party (LP) came a distant third with 22,763 votes. Fourteen other candidates contested the election but failed to gain significant traction.

Okpebholo won in over 10 of Edo’s 18 local government areas, while the PDP secured marginal victories in the remaining councils. The APC also dominated two of the state’s three senatorial districts, cementing its position.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared Okpebholo winner and returned him elected. He was subsequently sworn into office on 12 November 2024, succeeding outgoing PDP Governor Godwin Obaseki at the Dennis Osadebe House.

Dissatisfied with the election outcome, Ighodalo initiated legal action to disqualify Okpebholo, but both the tribunal and appellate court have rejected his claims. He has now indicated his intention to pursue the matter at the Supreme Court, the final legal arbiter.