We Stopped APC From Reclaiming Osun — ADC Reveals Opposition Alliance Behind Adeleke’s Victory

• The African Democratic Congress (ADC) says it deliberately collaborated with the Accord Party during the August 15 Osun governorship election to prevent the All Progressives Congress (APC) from reclaiming the state.

• ADC National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, said the party foresaw that splitting opposition votes could have created an opening for the APC to win the election.

• Incumbent Governor Ademola Adeleke, who contested on the Accord platform, secured 511,067 votes, defeating APC candidate Bola Oyebamiji, who polled 444,815 votes. ADC candidate Najeem Salaam secured 17,180 votes in the August 15 governorship election, but the party says the result should not be interpreted as a failure.

• Asked whether ADC directed its supporters to vote for Adeleke, Abdullahi said the party instead cooperated with Accord, stressing that the arrangement was deliberate and backed by the ADC leadership.

August 18, () — The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has revealed that it entered into a deliberate electoral collaboration with the Accord Party during the August 15 Osun State governorship election to prevent the All Progressives Congress (APC) from reclaiming power in the state.

The revelation was made by the ADC National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, on Trust TV on Monday while reacting to the party’s performance and the outcome of the election.

According to Abdullahi, the ADC had identified the danger of opposition votes being divided among different candidates ahead of the poll. He said such fragmentation could have handed the election to the APC, prompting the ADC to explore cooperation with Accord.

“We saw the possibility of collaboration. We saw the possibility earlier enough that if we decided to go full throttle, the possibility that the opposition would divide the votes and the APC would take the victory was there. And that was why we saw the opportunity to work together, and that was what happened”, Abdullahi said.

The strategy ultimately coincided with the victory of Adeleke, who polled 511,067 votes to defeat Oyebamiji of the APC, who secured 444,815 votes. ADC’s candidate, Najeem Salaam, finished third with 17,180 votes.

Despite finishing far behind the two leading candidates, Abdullahi said the ADC would not describe its performance as a failure. He explained that the party’s objective in the election went beyond securing the governorship for its candidate.

“That is why we can confidently celebrate what is going on in Osun, because for us, victory means that APC was defeated. So we don’t see the fact that our governorship candidate did not emerge as an occasion of defeat or failure. The failure, the defeat of the APC, was a real victory for us”, he said.

Abdullahi also clarified that the ADC did not formally direct its supporters to vote for Adeleke.

Asked whether the party had instructed its members to support the incumbent governor, he said: “We cooperated with the Accord party.”

He stressed that the decision was deliberate and received the backing of the ADC leadership.

The development has added a fresh dimension to the interpretation of the Osun election, particularly as opposition parties begin positioning themselves for the 2027 general election. For the ADC, the outcome provides an example of what could happen if opposition parties put aside individual ambitions and coordinate their electoral strategies against the ruling APC.

Abdullahi said the experience had demonstrated that opposition parties could defeat the APC at the national level if they worked together.

“It’s something that was deliberate, and we are glad that the outcome has justified the confidence that everyone has put in the process”, he said.

He added that the election had proved that “the opposition working together can actually defeat this incumbent, no matter how awesome they are.”

However, Abdullahi rejected the suggestion that the ADC should take credit for Adeleke’s victory.

“When I say that we are not taking credit, we are saying that the credit belongs to the people of Osun State. The victory belongs to Ademola Adeleke, who, in spite of all odds, still managed to emerge as the governor of Osun State”, he said.

At the time of filing this report, neither the Accord Party nor Governor Ademola Adeleke has yet to confirm the opposition alliance in the Osun governorship election.