The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has listed Mr Jimoh Ibrahim as the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the Ondo governorship election slated for November 26.
INEC released its list of candidates for the election on its website on Thursday evening.
Legal practitioner, Mr Rotimi Akeredolu was listed as the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) with Alfred Agboola Ajayi as his running mate.
The candidate of the Labour Party is Adeuti Stephen Taye with Akinbamire Adebayo Benson as the running mate, while Olusola Oke was listed as the candidate of the Alliance for Democracy (AD), with Dauda Ganny Oluwadare his running mate.
Oke, who contested in the September 3 primary election of the All Progressives Congress (APC), dumped the party for the Alliance for Democracy (AD) to actualise his ambition.
A total of 28 political parties were listed to partake in the November election.
Jimoh Ibrahim’s listing alongside his running mate Alabi Ebenezer Omotayo is in line with a court order on October 14.
Justice Abang had ordered INEC to recognise Mr Ibrahim as the PDP flag bearer for the election.
The court ordered to reinforce a verdict it earlier gave on June 29, which recognised the Senator Ali Modu Sheriff faction of the PDP and directed INEC to only deal with the faction instead of the Markafi group.
Since then there have been demands by the two PDP factions that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) must recognise their candidates.
Factions of the embattled National Chairman of the PDP, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff and that of the party’s Caretaker Committee Chairman, Senator Ahmed Makarfi, on Wednesday insisted that their candidates must be recognised, although the electoral law recognises one candidate per political party.
As INEC prepared to release its list on Friday, a Federal High Court declined to grant an application filed by the candidate of the Ahmed Makarfi-led faction of the PDP, Mr Eyitayo Jegede, seeking to appeal the ruling that ordered the electoral umpire to recognise Mr Jimoh Ibrahim as the PDP flag bearer.
In a ruling that lasted for about one hour on Wednesday in Abuja, Justice Okon Abang held that Mr Jegede lacked the ‘locus standi’ to appeal the decision of the court.
Peace Pact
Earlier in the day, participating political parties in Ondo State governorship election signed a peace pact to ensure that peace reigns before, during and after the polls.
The State Commissioner of Police, Hilda Ibifuro-Harrison, urged the political stakeholders to adhere to the rules and regulations of the election.
He also asked them to conduct themselves in a peaceful manner before, during and after the polls.
The candidate of the Social Democratic Party, Olu Agunloye and the Vice Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party in Ondo State, Fatai Adams, pledged to play by the rules of the game.
Fifteen out of the 28 political parties that would partake in the November election were present at the signing of the peace pact.
