Adebayo Adenrele
The Director General of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Governorship Campaign Council in Ekiti State, Senator Cyril Fasuyi, has expressed confidence that voter apathy will not undermine the party’s ambition to secure 500,000 votes for Governor Biodun Oyebanji in the June 20, 2026 governorship election.
NEWSTODAYNG gathered that voter participation in Ekiti State gubernatorial elections has shown a steady decline over the last three cycles, dropping from approximately 50.3% in 2014 to 36.5% in 2022.
In 2014, the state recorded 733,766 registered voters and a total votes cast of 360, 455(50.32%), 909,585 registered voters, 403,451 total votes cast (44.36%) in 2018 and 988,923 registered voters, 360,753 total votes cast (36.5%) in 2022.
Addressing journalists in Ado-Ekiti, Fasuyi, who represents Ekiti North Senatorial District, stated that the APC remains optimistic of surpassing its target despite concerns over traditionally low voter turnout in previous elections.
He argued that the political landscape in 2026 would differ significantly from that of 2022, citing the performance of the Oyebanji administration as a key factor that would drive higher voter participation.
According to him, with over 800,000 registered voters in the state, the party’s projection of 500,000 votes is both realistic and achievable, even if turnout does not reach its maximum potential.
He stressed that the figure represents a strategic target rather than an overestimation, adding that it does not imply total voter dominance over opposition parties.
His words, “The situation in 2026 will not be the same as what we saw in 2022. The administration of Governor Biodun Oyebanji has been very outstanding in the last three and a half years. Definitely, the strategy to achieve 500,000 votes will also differ.
“The governor never said there were only 500,000 registered voters. The registered voters are around 800,000. So if out of 800,000 voters we are targeting 500,000 votes, I don’t think that is a big deal.
“It would have been different if we had 400,000 voters and we said we wanted to achieve 500,000. We are also not saying we want all 800,000 votes, which would mean nobody would vote for the opposition. If you check the percentage, it is achievable”.
