Benue State Governor, Hyacinth Alia, has won the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship primary election, securing the party’s ticket for the 2027 general elections after a landslide victory.
The results of the direct primary election, announced on Thursday in Makurdi, showed that Governor Alia polled 367,786 votes to defeat his closest rivals, Jeffrey Kuranun and Terwase Orbunde, who scored 2,923 and 3,247 votes respectively.
Announcing the results, the Chairman of the APC Governorship and House of Assembly Primary Election Committee in Benue State, Kabir Isah, described the exercise as peaceful and transparent.
“The exercise was conducted peacefully and in line with party guidelines. Governor Hyacinth Alia has scored the highest number of votes and is hereby declared the winner of the primary election,” he said.
Following his victory, Governor Alia expressed appreciation to party members, stakeholders, and residents of the state for what he described as overwhelming support.
“I remain grateful to God Almighty for the grace and opportunity to serve the people of Benue State,” the governor said.
He said the result reflected renewed confidence in his administration and described the outcome as a mandate to continue delivering inclusive governance.
According to him, his government would intensify efforts in security, infrastructure development, healthcare, and education across the state.
“I assure the people of Benue State that we will continue to prioritise their welfare and deepen development across all sectors,” he said.
Alia also commended his opponents for participating in the primary election, noting that their involvement demonstrated internal democracy within the party.
He further praised President Bola Tinubu and the APC leadership for adopting the direct primary system, saying it allowed party members to freely choose their preferred candidates.
The governor urged party members to remain united ahead of the general election, stressing that internal cohesion would be key to electoral success.
“We are all members of the same party working for the progress of Benue State. I call on everyone to join hands so we can move the state forward,” he added.
