Anambra Election: Why I Lost in My Polling Unit — LP Moghalu

Labour Party governorship candidate in Anambra State, George Moghalu, has attributed his defeat in his polling unit to widespread vote-buying, which he said was fueled by the economic hardship many voters face.

Speaking on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics, Moghalu said he refused to take part in the practice because he could not match the sums being offered by other candidates. According to him, many voters succumbed to financial temptation.

“Yes, because I couldn’t afford how much that was being paid. I couldn’t pay, and I refused to pay, I refused to get involved,” he said. “They have too much money to buy votes, and what do you expect my people to do? They fell because a lot of them are poor.”

Moghalu accused the ruling All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) of being the main perpetrator of the alleged vote-buying, claiming that some of its agents—and even a commissioner—were caught purchasing votes in his constituency.

He argued that the outcome of the election did not reflect the will of the people, insisting he would have won if the process had been free and fair.

Governor Chukwuma Soludo of APGA was declared winner of the election by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) after securing a landslide victory across all 21 local government areas. Soludo garnered 422,664 votes to defeat Nicholas Ukachukwu of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who scored 99,445 votes. Paul Chukwuma of the Young Progressives Party (YPP) followed with 37,753 votes, while Labour Party’s George Moghalu recorded 10,576 votes. John Nwosu of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and Jude Ezenwafor of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) polled 8,208 and 1,401 votes, respectively.

Soludo’s win marks his second term in office, making him the third governor in Anambra’s history to achieve re-election.