Osun Decides 2026: Over 40,000 Security Operatives Deploy as Voters Brave Tensions to Elect New Governor

Meta Title: Osun Governorship Election 2026: Live Updates, Security, Candidates & Results
Meta Description: Over 40,000 security personnel deployed for the Osun governorship election as Governor Adeleke seeks re-election against APC’s Oyebamiji. Get live updates on voting, security, and results.

The people of Osun State are voting today to elect a governor who will steer the affairs of the state for the next four years, with a massive security operation involving over 40,000 personnel deployed across the state to ensure a peaceful and credible electoral process. The election, which is the final off-cycle governorship contest before Nigeria’s 2027 general elections, has attracted national and international attention, with President Bola Tinubu charging the Independent National Electoral Commission to use the poll as a test case to demonstrate its preparedness for the 2027 elections.

The security operation is a multi-agency effort led by the Nigeria Police Force, which has deployed 15,000 officers to the state. A Deputy Inspector-General of Police is coordinating the entire security operation, supported by helicopter and drone units for aerial surveillance, while a Commissioner of Police has been assigned to each of Osun’s 30 Local Government Areas to ensure localized command. The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps has contributed 10,000 personnel drawn from ten state commands, deploying specialized units including the CG’s Special Intelligence Squad, a K9 unit, and a Special Female Squad. The military and other statutory security agencies are also involved in the joint security operation, with a high number of military personnel stationed at strategic parts of the state capital and other local government areas since the beginning of the week.

In a clear directive aimed at preventing intimidation, the police have barred all quasi-security outfits from participating in election duties, including the Western Nigeria Security Network (Amotekun), vigilante groups, hunters, and other community-based security organizations, making it clear that securing the election is strictly the responsibility of constitutionally recognized agencies. While armed mobile police units are on standby across the state, officers stationed directly at polling units will remain unarmed to comply with the Electoral Act and avoid intimidating voters, with the Inspector-General directing that four unarmed personnel be stationed at each of the state’s over 3,700 polling units.

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The Independent National Electoral Commission has declared its readiness for the poll, with 11 out of 13 scheduled activities already implemented and final preparations for the deployment of over 15,000 ad hoc staff completed. A total of 2,339,233 people are registered to vote in the election, of which 1,906,390, representing 81.50 percent, collected their Permanent Voter Cards, while the remaining 432,843 PVCs, representing 18.50 percent of registered voters, have been safely deposited in the Central Bank of Nigeria in line with established practice. The commission has deployed 5,130 Bimodal Voter Accreditation System machines for the state’s 3,763 polling units, with 1,328 additional devices kept as backups, a deployment that has attracted attention as 5,305 BVAS machines were reportedly deployed for the 2022 governorship election across 3,753 polling units.

The election features 15 political parties following the inclusion of the Social Democratic Party candidate, Dr Francis Olugbenga Ajala, on the ballot by INEC in compliance with a Federal High Court judgement delivered on July 22, 2026, which also required the commission to reproduce ballot papers and result sheets to reflect the addition. The candidates include Governor Ademola Adeleke of the Accord Party, who won the 2022 election on the PDP platform before defecting and is now seeking re-election; Bola Oyebamiji of the All Progressives Congress, a former commissioner for finance in the state seeking to return the APC to power; and 13 other candidates from various political parties including the Action Alliance, African Action Congress, African Democratic Congress, Action Democratic Party, All Progressives Grand Alliance, Allied Peoples Movement, Action Peoples Party, Boot Party, New Nigeria Peoples Party, Peoples Redemption Party, Young Progressive Party, and Zenith Labour Party.

The political atmosphere has been highly charged, with the two main parties trading allegations and counter-allegations of violence, thuggery, and threats. The APC has accused Accord Party leaders of harbouring political thugs at the Government House in Osogbo and shielding them from police arrest, with a member of the APC Governorship Election Campaign Council media committee claiming intelligence that a large number of political thugs had been mobilised into the Government House. The Commissioner for Information in the state, Oluoomo Kolapo Alimi, has accused APC members of possessing firearms, lamenting that some of them who were arrested by the police were hurriedly released, while the Speaker of the Osun State House of Assembly, Adewale Egbedun, alleged that there were attempts to attack him, saying some men were arrested with guns and he personally handed them over to the director of the DSS demanding prosecution, only for the suspects to be released within a short period.

The violence has not been limited to accusations, with reports indicating at least 34 election-related violent incidents and 18 deaths in Osun State since May 2026, according to data from the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development’s Conflict Tracker, while a separate report documented at least 30 politically motivated killings, with the violence concentrated in areas like Ilesa, Igbogi, and Ikoti, where the line between political violence and cult-related activity has become increasingly blurred. In a significant development that has drawn widespread condemnation, a video surfaced showing Senator Francis Fadahunsi, representing Osun East, allegedly inciting his supporters to kill Accord Party members, leading to his invitation for questioning by the police and calls for prosecution from various quarters.

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Despite the incidents of political violence and killings, the people of the state have expressed readiness to come out and vote for candidates of their choice, with correspondents who went round the state reporting that the people did not entertain fears about coming out to vote, saying the threats and violence had not affected their resolve to cast their ballots. Sermons at various Jumuat mosques across the state yesterday focused on the election and the need for all stakeholders to shun violence and ensure a free, fair, and credible election, while a prominent civil society leader in the state, Comrade Waheed Saka, said the atmosphere was peaceful and expressed optimism that the electorate would come out in large numbers, charging security operatives to be on high alert and take necessary steps to ensure safety and boost voter confidence.

Governor Adeleke has pledged to set up an independent commission of inquiry after the election to investigate all reported cases of killings and violence connected to the election period, promising that the commission will establish the circumstances surrounding these incidents and recommend appropriate actions to ensure that everyone responsible is brought to justice regardless of political affiliation, position, or influence. The governor also stated that the government would put in place a framework to support and compensate the families of those who lost their lives, saying the memories of all the victims will be appropriately honoured and that the election will come and go, but the people of Osun will remain one people.

Security agencies, including the police, the Department of State Security, the military, and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps, have deployed their personnel across the state to ensure the safety of lives and property, with authorities warning that anyone caught trying to undermine a free and fair election will be arrested and prosecuted, with a directive that offenders could be transferred to Abuja for prosecution, and promising to arrest and prosecute anyone caught engaging in vote buying. Credible election observers, including The Kukah Centre, Yiaga Africa, Kimpact Development Initiative, the National Democratic Institute, the European Union Election Observation team, and the leadership of the Nigerian Bar Association, are in the state to monitor the election, ensuring that the process is transparent and credible.

President Bola Tinubu has called on the Independent National Electoral Commission to use the Osun governorship election to show Nigerians that it is prepared for the 2027 general elections, while also tasking security agencies to ensure a peaceful and transparent election in the state. The president charged the electorate to come out to discharge their civic responsibility and eschew any act that could disrupt the peaceful conduct of the election, assuring the people of their safety before and after the poll, and declaring that the outcome of the Osun governorship election must reflect the will of the people.

In a last-minute political move that adds a new dimension to the political calculation in the state, the Allied Peoples Movement candidate, Adebayo Adewale, withdrew from the race and declared his support for Governor Adeleke, saying he believes the governor deserves another term to consolidate his achievements. The election is being conducted amid heightened political tension and concerns over security and possible violence, with the latest incident involving the reported killing of the nephew of the APC Campaign Council’s director-general, further underscoring the high stakes and volatile atmosphere surrounding the poll.

The poll is attracting national attention as the final off-cycle governorship election before the 2027 general elections, with the outcome likely to serve as a bellwether for the political dynamics that will shape the national contest. The people of Osun State are determined to exercise their democratic rights, and despite the challenges, the atmosphere across the state has been described as largely peaceful, with voters expressing confidence that the security measures put in place will protect them as they cast their ballots for the candidate of their choice.