How many LGAs must a candidate win to emerge governor? Here’s what the law says
On February 28, 2023, when the presidential election results from FCT Abuja were announced, the interpretation of Section 134(2) of the 1999 Constitution sparked a hot debate on the internet.
That section of the constitution states that in addition to having the highest number of votes cast at an election, a Presidential candidate shall be deemed to have been duly elected when he has not less than one-quarter of the votes cast at the election in at least two-thirds of all the States in the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
While Peter Obi, the candidate of the Labour party, pulled 59% of the total 478,923 accredited votes in Abuja and left candidates of the All Progressive Congress (APC) and People’s Democratic Party (PDP) with 19% and 15% respectively, Nigerians were divided as to whether Abuja is regarded as a state.
Although Bola Tinubu of APC was declared the winner of the election, suggesting that it is not mandatory for a candidate to gain at least 25% in the nation’s capital territory, the spotlight has been cast on the constitutional requirements
With gubernatorial elections set for Saturday, March 18, 2023, many voters have been asking if the same rule guiding the election of a president also applies to the governorship poll.
Here’s what the law says:
Governorship elections will be held in 28 of the 36 states States on Saturday, but there will be no elections in Anambra, Bayelsa, Edo, Ekiti, Imo, Kogi, Osun, and Ondo.
According to Section 179(2)(b) of the Nigerian Constitution, a candidate for the office of Governor of a state shall be deemed to have been duly elected where, among other things, he/she has “not less than one-quarter of the votes cast at the election in each of at least two-thirds of all the local government areas in the state.”
In simpler terms, a governorship candidate must win the highest number of votes in the election and also have at least 25% of the votes in at least two-thirds of the local government areas (LGAs) in the state. This implies that in a state like Lagos with 20 LGAs, aside from polling the highest number of votes, a governorship candidate is expected to win at least 12 LGAs before such a candidate is declared winner of the election.
This provision is aimed at ensuring that a Governor has a widespread support base across the state and not just in one or a few local government areas.
In the event that no candidate meets this requirement in the first election, a supplementary election will be conducted until a candidate emerges with the required number of votes.
Subsections 3 and 4 of Section 179 state that:
In default of a candidate duly elected in accordance with subsection 3) of this section, there shall be a second election. The second election shall include:
a) The candidate who secured the highest number of votes cast at the election; and
b) One among the remaining candidates who secured a majority of votes in the highest number of local government areas in the State. However, if there are more than one candidate with a majority of votes in the highest number of local government areas, the candidate among them with the next highest total of votes cast at the election shall be the second candidate.
While it appears that there has been a reduction in the eagerness of people to vote after the presidential election, it is important for citizens to note that Governors have a critical role to play in the economic development of their respective states. They are responsible for creating policies that attract investment, creating job opportunities, and improving the living conditions of their people.
Dr. Robert Ekat, Neusroom’s political analyst, said, “It is important for Nigerians to know that the state governments are closest to the people and have the capacity to impact the people more than the federal government.”
