The All Progressives Congress candidate for governor of Edo State, Monday Okpebholo, has received a certificate of return from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The certificate was issued on Thursday at the INEC headquarters in Abuja.
In the election held on Saturday, September 21, Asue Ighodalo of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) was the closest competitor with 247,274 votes, but Okpebholo emerged victorious with 291,667.
The Labour Party (LP) candidate Olumide Akpata finished a distant third in the contest with a total of 22,763 votes.
The three front-runners received more votes than the fourteen other contenders who ran for the seat.
With the APC candidate winning more than ten of the eighteen local government areas, the PDP candidate only just prevailed in the remaining local councils.
Two of the state’s three senatorial seats that are considered battlegrounds were taken over by the APC.
The PDP has rejected the outcome of the election vowing to seek redress in court.