JUST IN: Ukachukwu becomes Anambra APC guber ticket, polls 1,455 votes

Prince Nicholas Ukachukwu has emerged as the winner of the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship primary election in Anambra State.

Ukachukwu secured the party’s ticket with a landslide victory, polling 1,455 votes in the keenly contested election that began on Saturday and lasted until 4:19 a.m. on Sunday.

Valentine Ozigbo came a distant second with 67 votes, followed by Johnbosco Onunkwo with 26 votes. Edozie Madu trailed with 8 votes, while 27 votes were declared invalid.

Announcing the results in the early hours of Sunday, the APC returning officer and Governor of Cross River State, Bassey Otu, declared Ukachukwu as the party’s flag bearer and described him as “the lion of APC in Anambra State.”

Ukachukwu will face off against the incumbent Governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), in the November 8 governorship election.

He said, “By the power conferred on me as the chief returning officer, I hereby declare him the winner of the APC primaries in Anambra state.”

Otu, however, commended the security agencies for maintaining law and order while also thanking the contestants for their doggedness and maturity

“Power belongs to God. There’s no victor, no vanquished in today’s election. Our party had already decided that whoever emerges victorious would be supported by all,” the governor said

The total number of delegates was 1630, but only 1582 were accredited, while the remaining others did not come

In his victory speech, Ukachukwu thanked President Bola Tinubu for giving the APC in Anambra the platform to vote, which, according to him, was the first in Anambra’s history without writing the result

“It is not a journey, but beginning of journey. All of us have to come together as one family for this journey. It is not going to be easy fighting the incumbent, but with a united house, everything is possible with the help of God.

“We should close ranks and deliver Anambra to APC come November 8, and I promise not to disappoint you”, Ukachukwu said.

The governorship candidate of the APC represented Abuja Municipal at the Federal House of representative in 1999