The All Progressives Congress (APC) has secured a clean sweep of the 20 chairmanship seats in the just-concluded Lagos State Local Government elections, reinforcing its dominance in the state’s grassroots political structure.
Naijaonpoint reports that the Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission (LASIEC) on Sunday confirmed that the APC also clinched 375 of the 376 councillorship positions, leaving only one ward, Ward D in Yaba, for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
The elections, held on Saturday across 13,325 polling units, saw Lagosians elect chairmen and councillors for the 20 Local Government Areas (LGAs) and 37 Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs).
Despite over seven million registered voters, the exercise witnessed low voter turnout in many areas, although LASIEC insisted turnout might have been underestimated due to the fast voting process.
In her post-election statement, LASIEC Chairman, Justice Bola Okikiolu-Ighile (retd.), said, “No political party was prevented from participating in the elections. The process was open.”
Addressing concerns about low participation, she said, “Someone sent me a message that it didn’t take him more than five minutes at the polling unit. So, we may not even know how many people came out. If we say people turned out very low here, it might not be so over there.”
She acknowledged some logistical setbacks in the hinterlands but added that sensitive and non-sensitive materials eventually reached all destinations.
While the polls were largely peaceful, there were reports of voter intimidation and late arrival of materials in certain areas. However, there were no widespread incidents of violence, according to field reports.
Out of 19 registered political parties, 15 contested the elections. APC was the only party that fielded candidates in all LGAs and LCDAs. PDP and Labour Party followed with lower numbers.
The 20 LGAs include: Agege, Alimosho, Ikeja, Mushin, Surulere, Lagos Mainland, Lagos Island, and Eti-Osa, among others. The 37 LCDAs include Ojokoro, Ikorodu West, Ijede, Yaba, Bariga, Itire-Ikate, and more.