INEC to issue certificates of return to by-election winners on Thursday

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has announced that certificates of return will be presented to winners of the August 16 by-elections on Thursday, August 21.

INEC National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Sam Olumekun, disclosed this in a statement on Tuesday in Abuja, citing Section 72(1) of the Electoral Act, 2022.

According to him, senators-elect from Anambra South and Edo Central, along with five House of Representatives members-elect from Edo, Jigawa, Kaduna, Ogun, and Oyo, will receive their certificates at INEC headquarters in Abuja at 3:00 p.m.

For state constituencies, the certificates will be issued by Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) on Friday, August 22, in Adamawa, Anambra, Kaduna, Kano, Kogi, Niger, and Taraba States.

Olumekun also announced that the suspended by-election in Kaura Namoda South Constituency of Zamfara will be concluded on August 21. Voting was earlier disrupted in five polling units with 3,265 collected PVCs, where the margin of lead was 1,662—necessitating a supplementary poll under the Electoral Act.

He recalled that 16 by-elections and two court-ordered rerun elections were conducted nationwide on August 16, covering two senatorial districts, five federal constituencies, and nine state assembly constituencies. All results were declared except for Kaura Namoda South.

Olumekun confirmed that two tribunal-ordered rerun elections in Enugu and Kano have also been concluded. Ngene Bright Emeka of the Labour Party (LP) won the Enugu South 1 State Constituency seat, while Ya’u Garba Gwarmai of the All Progressives Congress (APC) emerged winner in Ghari/Tsanyawa State Constituency of Kano.