The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared Abner Shittu Dahbo, the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), winner of the by-election for Karim I Constituency in the Taraba State House of Assembly held on Saturday.
Dahbo secured victory with 5,895 votes, defeating his closest rival, Ajuji Kanda Ali of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who polled 5,488 votes. Former commissioner Badina Garba of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) came third with 1,774 votes, while the Social Democratic Party (SDP) candidate, Abubakar Jamilu Garba, finished last with 149 votes.
Announcing the results at the INEC collation centre in Karim Lamido, the Returning Officer, Dr. Musa Sa’ad, described the election as “highly contested” and commended all the candidates, their supporters, and political parties for demonstrating “a high sense of maturity and commitment to the democratic process.”
The by-election followed the resignation of Dr. Mike Dio Jen, who previously represented Karim I Constituency under the platform of the PDP before his appointment as Taraba State Commissioner for Tertiary Institutions by Governor Agbu Kefas.
With the result, the PDP has lost the seat it previously held to the APC, shifting the balance in the Taraba State House of Assembly.
