The governor of Ekiti State, Biodun Oyebanji, says the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state is capable of delivering between 600,000 and 700,000 votes for President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 general election.
Oyebanji made the remark in Abuja on Wednesday shortly after meeting with Tinubu at the State House.
The governor, who was accompanied by Opeyemi Bamidele, senate leader, said his projection was based on the APC’s growing vote numbers in recent elections in the state.
“The president’s chances are very bright. In 2022 when we first contested, we won with about 187,000 votes,” he said.
“Six months later, when the president contested, and I had only been in office for a few months, we increased it to about 210,000 votes.
“This 2026 governorship election has produced about 318,000 votes.
“So, you can extrapolate from that and see that our target in 2027 is between 600,000 and 700,000 votes, and it is doable.”
Oyebanji, who recently secured a second term after winning the governorship election earlier this month, credited his victory to divine favour and Tinubu’s support.
“It is not about what I have done differently. It is about two factors: the grace of God, and the support of the president that enabled us to deliver on our promises to our people,” the governor said.
“These are the two factors that led to the result we saw two weeks ago.”
The governor said he had reached out to his major rivals after the election and intends to work with them for the progress of the state.
“The election ended when the winner was declared. I phoned the two other candidates and, together with the chairman of the campaign council, we visited one of them,” he said.
“Once I get back to Ekiti, I will visit the other one. They have assured me of their cooperation because election has ended, politics has ended, and we have to move back to governance.
“I told them I would need their wisdom, suggestions and advice in ensuring that we continue to deliver for our people.”
Oyebanji said his administration would remain committed to implementing Ekiti’s 30-year development plan.
“We are not going to do anything differently because that 30-year development plan is the basis upon which our yearly budgets are built and upon which our manifesto is crafted. We will continue to diligently follow that plan,” he said.
He also voiced support for the creation of state police, saying governors are ready to fast-track implementation once the constitutional amendment process is completed.
“We are ready for state police. We are thankful to the national assembly for the constitutional amendments, and we are waiting for them to be transmitted to the state houses of assembly,” he said.
“The governors have made up their minds that they are going to give it speedy approval so that we can start implementation.”