Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has taken an early lead in the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential primary after results from 25 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) placed him far ahead of other contenders.
The ADC adjourned collation of the remaining results shortly before midnight on Tuesday, announcing that the exercise would resume by 8 p.m. on Wednesday in Abuja.
Results declared so far show Atiku with 1,390,276 votes. Former Minister of Transportation Rotimi Amaechi has secured 248,455 votes, while former banker Mohammed Hayatu-Deen has polled 156,075 votes.
Amaechi and Hayatu-Deen had earlier rejected the process in separate statements issued before collation began on Tuesday. Both candidates alleged widespread irregularities during the primaries conducted across the 36 states and the FCT on Monday.
Despite the objections, the ADC proceeded with the collation exercise in Abuja, with officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) present to observe the process.
Twelve states are yet to be announced. They include Bauchi, Bayelsa, Cross River, Delta, Edo, Jigawa, Kaduna, Katsina, Kwara, Lagos, Ogun and Rivers.
Atiku recorded some of his strongest margins in northern states. In Adamawa, he polled 177,141 votes, compared to Amaechi’s 1,896 and Hayatu-Deen’s 18,949. He also led in Kano with 155,595 votes, Gombe with 136,933, Borno with 86,084 and Niger with 79,206 votes.
In Kebbi, Atiku secured 65,523 votes against Amaechi’s 5,931, while in Sokoto he polled 63,823 votes compared to Amaechi’s 292. He also maintained leads in Zamfara, Yobe, Taraba, Kogi and Benue.
Amaechi posted his strongest outings in Akwa Ibom and Ebonyi. He won Akwa Ibom with 20,343 votes against Atiku’s 17,623, and led in Ebonyi with 6,400 votes to Atiku’s 1,210.
Hayatu-Deen’s best performances came in Borno, where he scored 23,011 votes, and Benue, where he polled 22,141 votes.
In the FCT, Atiku led with 18,704 votes, ahead of Amaechi’s 14,721 and Hayatu-Deen’s 5,576.
