Reported by: Oahimire Omone Precious | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
In a moment that has defied the bitter partisanship that defined the Osun State governorship campaign, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has placed a personal phone call to Governor Ademola Adeleke to congratulate him on his re-election victory, a gesture that has been hailed as a significant step towards national unity and democratic maturity. Governor Adeleke, who secured a decisive second term on the platform of the Accord Party, confirmed the development shortly after the Independent National Electoral Commission declared him the winner of Saturday's poll.
Speaking from his residence in Ede shortly after the Returning Officer announced his victory, Adeleke expressed profound gratitude to the President for ensuring a hitch-free electoral process and for reaching out personally to acknowledge his triumph. "I want to use this opportunity to thank Mr President. President has called me and congratulated me," the governor said, according to multiple reports on Sunday, August 16, 2026. The phone call, which was confirmed by TheHintsNews and Spear News Nigeria, came as a surprise to many political observers, given the fierce rivalry that had characterised the campaign and the open support that President Tinubu had extended to the All Progressives Congress candidate, Bola Oyebamiji.
The final results of the election, which were announced by INEC on Sunday, showed Governor Adeleke polling a total of 511,067 votes, defeating his closest challenger, Oyebamiji of the APC, who secured 444,811 votes. The incumbent governor won in 19 of the state's 30 local government areas, while the APC candidate clinched 11. The African Democratic Congress candidate, Najeem Salaam, finished a distant third with 17,180 votes. The election, which featured 15 candidates, was conducted across 3,763 polling units, with over 1.9 million registered voters participating.
In his victory speech, Adeleke thanked the people of Osun State for the confidence they reposed in him, dedicating the win to the people of the state and promising to continue the development projects he started in his first term. He also called on his opponents to join hands with him to move the state forward, saying the election was not a war but a contest of ideas. "The election was not a war but a contest of ideas," he said, echoing a sentiment that has been echoed by other political leaders in the wake of the poll.
The President's congratulatory call to Governor Adeleke is particularly significant given the context of the campaign. Throughout the election season, the APC had campaigned vigorously with the backing of President Tinubu and several governors, including Edo State Governor Monday Okpebholo, who had openly mocked Adeleke's dancing style and urged voters to collect money offered by opponents but vote for the APC candidate. The President's phone call to Adeleke has therefore been widely interpreted as a gesture of statesmanship, signalling a willingness to set aside partisan differences and work towards the stability and development of Osun State.
The relationship between Tinubu and Adeleke has been a subject of intense political speculation in recent months. Despite belonging to different political parties, Adeleke had consistently endorsed Tinubu's re-election bid for 2027, describing him as "our own son, father and leader." The governor had also called on President Tinubu to intervene in the pre-election violence that gripped the state, urging him to order security agencies to protect the integrity of the electoral process. The President's decision to call and congratulate Adeleke has been seen as a reciprocation of that gesture of goodwill.
Governor Adeleke also commended INEC for the seamless collation and uploading of results, as well as security agencies for maintaining peace across the state. The election, which was held on Saturday, August 15, was largely peaceful, despite isolated incidents of violence and technical glitches with the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System. The declaration of results brought to an end the collation process which began after voting closed across the state on Saturday.
The outcome of the Osun governorship election is being closely watched as a bellwether for the 2027 general elections, with both the APC and the Accord Party viewing the contest as a crucial test of their political strength. Governor Adeleke's victory, secured with a margin of over 66,000 votes, has solidified his grip on the South-West state for another four years. The President's congratulatory call has added a new dimension to the political landscape, suggesting that despite the fierce competition, there remains room for dialogue and reconciliation in Nigeria's democratic process.
For the people of Osun State, the President's gesture has been warmly received as a sign of democratic maturity. As one resident put it, "The President called to congratulate the governor. That is the way it should be. After the election, we are all one people." The sentiment reflects a growing hope that the bitterness of the campaign will give way to a spirit of cooperation and development in the years ahead. As Governor Adeleke himself declared, the election was not a war, but a contest of ideas. And in the end, it was the people of Osun who emerged victorious.
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