The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared Jude Ngaji of the All Progressives Congress (APC) the winner of the Ogoja/Yala Federal Constituency bye-election in Cross River State.
John Edor, the INEC Returning Officer for the election, announced the result on Sunday in Ogoja.
Mr Edor said Mr Ngaji scored 22,778 votes to defeat his closest rival, Mike Usibe of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who garnered 20,590 votes.
Reacting, Alphonsus Eba, the state APC chairman, commended INEC for a good job.
“The use of BVAS facilitated free and fair elections,” he said.
Mr Eba also commended President Muhammadu Buhari for signing the Electoral Act Amendment Bill, 2022, into law.
“This will surely strengthen the electoral process,” he said.
Venatius Ikem, the state PDP chairman, said his party was still studying the result of the election and would respond at the most appropriate time.
“There were discrepancies noticed during the election in many polling units but the party will respond in due course,” he said.
The election was to fill the vacuum created after Jarigbe Agom left the House of Representatives for the Senate to represent Cross River North.