Bola Ahmed Tinubu of the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) has been declared Nigeria’s president-elect by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) garnering 8.8 million.
The seventy-year-old garnered about 36.6 percent of the total votes against 6.9 million for opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate Atiku Abubakar and Labour Party’s Peter Obi, who won 6.1 million.
He scored the constitutionally required majority votes, and also secured the second requirement of 25 percent of the votes in 25 states
In an acceptance speech, Tinubu thanked voters and said he was “profoundly humbled.”
“This is a shining moment in the life of any man and an affirmation of our democratic existence,” he said. “I represent a promise and with your support, I know that promise will be fulfilled.”
He also appealed to his fellow contestants, asking them to team up to strengthen the country.
Tinubu was governor of Lagos state from 1999 to 2007 while Abubakar served as vice president from 1999 to 2007 and sixty-two-year-old Obi was a former governor of Anambra.
Tinubu won in Rivers, Borno, Jigawa, Zamfara, Benue, Kogi, Kwara, Niger, Osun, Ekiti, Ondo, Oyo and Ogun states while Abubakar got most votes in Katsina, Kebbi, Sokoto, Kaduna, Gombe, Yobe, Bauchi, Adamawa and Taraba, Osun, Akwa Ibom and Bayelsa states.
Obi won in Edo, Cross River, Delta, Lagos, FCT, Plateau, Imo, Ebonyi, Nasarawa, Anambra, Abia and Enugu states.
Once he is sworn in, he will take over from President Muhammadu Buhari who stepped down.
