APC wins three FCT area councils, PDP secures Gwagwalada as collation is ongoing

By Sabiu Abdullahi

The All Progressives Congress has claimed three of the six chairmanship seats in the Federal Capital Territory Area Council elections, while the Peoples Democratic Party took Gwagwalada, according to results announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission.

In AMAC, the incumbent chairman, Christopher Maikalangu of the APC, polled 40,295 votes, defeating his closest rival from the African Democratic Congress, who scored 12,109 votes. The PDP candidate trailed with 3,398 votes.

In Bwari, APC candidate Joshua Ishaku won the chairmanship with 18,466 votes, while the ADC candidate came second with 4,254 votes. The Zenith Labour Party candidate received 3,515 votes.

The ruling party also prevailed in Kwali, where Daniel Nuhu of the APC scored 17,032 votes, defeating the PDP candidate, Haruna Pai, who garnered 8,575 votes.

The PDP secured a major win in Gwagwalada, where Mohammed Kasim defeated his APC rival, Yahaya Shehu, with 22,165 votes to Shehu’s 17,788. Other parties in the race included the Social Democratic Party with 432 votes, the New Nigeria Peoples Party with 175 votes, and the Young Progressives Party with 158 votes. Several smaller parties received minimal support.

INEC Returning Officer, Philip Akpen, described the Gwagwalada election as peaceful and orderly, noting that voting and collation proceeded without major disruptions. Out of 207,577 registered voters, 46,294 were accredited, with 43,960 valid votes and 1,521 rejected ballots.

The results sheets were signed by party agents, including those of APC, PDP, ADC, APGA, YPP, and NNPP. INEC is yet to announce results for the remaining two FCT Area Councils as collation continues.

The elections were closely watched amid a keen contest between the APC and PDP, while smaller parties struggled to gain traction in most declared councils.