The political battle over the August 15, 2026 Osun State governorship election has now shifted to the courtroom, with the All Progressives Congress, APC, and the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, filing separate petitions challenging Governor Ademola Adeleke’s re-election.
The two petitions were displayed on the notice board of the Osun State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal in Osogbo on Monday, September 7, formally setting the post-election legal process in motion.
The development followed confirmation by the tribunal’s Secretary, Pefe Belemore, that petitions challenging the election outcome had been received.
The APC petition, marked EPT/OS/GOV/01/2026, was filed by the party’s governorship candidate, Asiwaju Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji. Governor Adeleke, the Accord Party and the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, are listed as respondents.
A separate petition, numbered EPT/OS/GOV/02/2026, was filed by the PDP’s governorship candidate, Adebayo Olugbenga Adedamola. The petition names Governor Adeleke, INEC and the Accord Party as respondents.
Adeleke, who contested the election on the platform of the Accord Party, was declared winner with 511,067 votes, defeating Oyebamiji of the APC, who polled 444,815 votes.
The specific grounds on which the two parties are challenging the result have not yet been made public.
With the petitions now formally displayed, the next stage is expected to involve the service of the legal processes on the respondents, followed by pre-hearing proceedings and, subsequently, substantive proceedings before the tribunal.
The development marks a fresh legal chapter in Osun State’s closely watched governorship contest, placing Adeleke’s re-election before the tribunal for judicial determination.
