APC sweeps all 24 chairmanship seats in Gombe

Gombe State has seen a sweeping victory for the All Progressives Congress (APC) in its recent local government elections, with the party securing all 24 chairmanship seats and all 240 councillorship positions. The Gombe State Independent Electoral Commission (GOSIEC) declared the results, highlighting the election's significance due to the expansion of administrative areas.

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The last cycle of elections in 2023 was conducted in 11 local governments. But His Excellency created an additional 13 Local Council Development Areas to bring development closer to the people.

This election cycle saw a major expansion in local governance, increasing the number of administrative councils from 11 to 24. This expansion was approved by Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya, who aimed to bring governance closer to the populace. GOSIEC Chairman Abdullahi Garba noted that this move was inspired by other states, such as Lagos, and involved securing the necessary legal framework through the House of Assembly.

The increased number of positions means the chairmanship seats have doubled from 11 to 24, and the councillorship seats have grown from 114 to 240. Garba expressed gratitude to the governor for creating the enabling environment for this expansion and for bringing development closer to the people.

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It was 11 local governments then, but now we have 24. We had 114 ward councillors before, but today we have 240 councillors. I think it is a great achievement, and we say thank you to His Excellency.

While several political parties participated, only a few fielded candidates across all the newly created councils. The APC contested the full cycle, while parties like the African Action Congress, Democratic Leadership Alliance, Youth Party, Zenith Labour Party, and National Rescue Movement fielded candidates in a limited number of areas. GOSIEC thanked all stakeholders, including political parties, observers, civil society organizations, security agencies, and the media, for their contributions to a peaceful electoral process.

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From the results we have received, APC has been declared the winner in virtually all the local governments. It also won all the 240 councillorship seats.