Bye-elections: LP Is Dead, ADC Non-Existent In Anambra – Soludo Taunts Peter Obi

Anambra State Governor, Chukwuma Soludo, has declared that the Labour Party (LP) and the African Democratic Congress (ADC) have no political relevance in the state following Saturday’s by-elections. Speaking on Sunday at a celebration in Nanka after the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) secured sweeping victories, Soludo said the outcome proved that opposition forces had been rejected by the electorate.

The governor dismissed ADC’s presence in the state, despite the coalition being backed by former governor Peter Obi, now a prominent member of the Labour Party. “ADC does not exist in Anambra. We showed it yesterday. Labour Party is dead,” Soludo told cheering APGA supporters clad in party paraphernalia. He argued that the coalition had hoped to test its strength through the by-elections but was overwhelmingly defeated.

Results announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) confirmed APGA’s dominance. Emmanuel Nwachukwu of APGA won the Anambra South Senatorial District seat with 90,408 votes, far ahead of the APC’s Azuka Okwuosa, who polled 19,847 votes, while ADC’s Donald Amangbo managed 2,889 votes. Nwachukwu now replaces Senator Ifeanyi Ubah, who died in July 2024. In the Onitsha North Constituency 1 by-election for the State House of Assembly, APGA’s Ifeoma Azikiwe also emerged victorious.

Soludo, who is seeking re-election in the November 8 governorship poll, noted the symbolism of APGA’s win in Onitsha, Obi’s home constituency. “They wanted to use it as a test case for the new concoction called ADC in Anambra, but the people spoke loudly. We won with about 77%, a very emphatic statement. The signal is clear: both ADC and Labour Party are dead in Anambra,” he said.

The governor, a former Central Bank of Nigeria chief, has positioned APGA as the state’s dominant movement. He recently reiterated his long-standing personal ties with President Bola Tinubu, insisting he has no apologies for the friendship.