In the first round of a series of petitions contesting their designation as the winners of the Edo State governorship election held on September 21, 2024, Governor Monday Okpebholo and the All Progressives Congress, or APC, have prevailed.

The Action Alliance (AA) and a man named Adekunle Rufai Omoaje filed a petition against them, but the Edo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal dismissed it as frivolous and without merit.

Adekunle Rufai Omoaje, the petitioner, was found to have no locus standi to institute the case in the Tribunal’s first ruling on Wednesday since his petition was not founded on election-related issues.

The Tribunal ruled, among other things, that Omoaje had no authority to contest the election’s legitimacy because he did not take part in the gubernatorial race.

Omoaje’s complaint against the election, according to the Tribunal, was that he was not acknowledged as the Action Alliance’s National Chairman for the purpose of proposing candidates. But it was decided that the Electoral Act of 2022 did not support his allegations.

In the case, Omoaje had requested that the Tribunal rule that the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) announcement of Okpebholo and the APC as the election’s winners was unlawful, illegal, unconditional, and worthless since it did not comply with the Electoral Act.

In addition, he claimed that Okpebholo and the APC did not receive the majority of legitimate votes in the election due to corruption.

Omoaje further claimed that because AA did not sign the nomination form as the party’s national chairman, it was not permitted to propose a legitimate candidate for governor in the election.

With 291,667 votes, Okpebholo of the APC was proclaimed the victor by INEC, defeating his nearest opponent, Asue Ighodalo of the PDP, who received 247,655 votes.

Details will be provided later.