Results from 18 states and the Federal Capital Territory so far released by the Independent National Electoral Commission on Monday showed the All Progressives Congress Presidential candidate, Maj. Gen. Muhammadu Buhari coasting to victory.
He polled 8,520,436 votes in the states and the FCT while his Peoples Democratic Party counterpart and incumbent President Goodluck Jonathan had 6,488,210 votes.
The Daura, Katsina State-born former Head of State won 10 of the states and Jonathan, eight plus the FCT.
The states cleared by Buhari are Kaduna, Kwara, Katsina, Kano, Jigawa, Oyo, Ondo, Osun, Kogi and Ogun.
Jonathan captured Abia, Anambra, Nasarawa, Enugu, Ekiti, Akwa Ibom, Imo, Plateau and FCT.
In the South-West states, Buhari won in Oyo, Ondo, Osun, Ogun but lost in Ekiti where he garnered 120,331 votes. Jonathan polled 176,466 votes in the PDP-controlled state.
Buhari polled 299,889 votes in Ondo, 308,290 in Ogun, 528, 620 in Oyo and 383,603 in Osun while Jonathan had 251,368; 207,950; 303,376; 249,929 respectively.
The results from Lagos State are yet to be announced.
Expectedly, the President held sway in the South-East by scoring in Abia, 368,303 votes; Anambra, 660, 762; Enugu,553,003; Ebonyi, 323,653 and Imo, 559,185.
Buhari had 13,394 votes in Abia State; 17,926 in Anambra; 14,157 in Enugu; 19,518 in Ebonyi and133,253 in Imo.
ZovoeJonathan/Remi Latinwo
INEC only announced the results from only one of the six South-South states before it shifted further action till Tuesday(today). The state is Akwa Ibom where Jonathan had 953,304 votes against Buhari’s 58,411.
Jonathan also had the upper hand in the FCT where he garnered157, 195 votes ahead of Buhari’s 146, 399.
In Kwara State, the former Head of State recorded 302,146 votes; 1,127,760 in Kaduna; 1,345,441in his home state of Katsina; 885,988 in Jigawa; 1,903,999 in Kano; 236,838 in Nasarawa; 264, 851in Kogi and 429,140 in Plateau.
Jonathan had 132,602 in Kwara; 484,085 in Kaduna; 98,937 in Katsina; 142,904 in Jigawa; 215,779 in Kano; 273,460 in Nasarawa; 149,987 in Kogi; and 549, 615 in Plateau.
Saturday’s election was the fourth time Buhari was taking a shot at the Presidency. In 2003 and 2007, he flew the flag of the defunct All Nigeria Peoples Party and in 2011, the Congress for Progressive Change.
Hours before the results were announced , Jonathan met behind closed doors with some foreign observers who monitored the presidential and National Assembly elections.
Those he met with were a former Ghanaian President, Kuffour, who is the leader of the ECOWAS Elections Observers; a former Liberian President, Amos Sawyer, leader of the African Union Election Observer Mission; a former Malawian President and Head of Commonwealth Election Observer Mission, Bakili Muluzi; and the AU Commissioner for Political Affairs, Ambassador Aisha Laraba Abdullahi.
The meeting which started inside the Presidential Villa, Abuja at about 3.30pm was also attended by Vice-President Namadi Sambo and a few presidential aides.
