Nigeria's president is poised to win a second term in Africa's largest democracy, with unofficial results showing a victory, his campaign spokesman said.
Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari gestures as he arrives to cast a vote in Nigeria's presidential election at a polling station in Daura, Katsina State, Nigeria, on Feb. 23, 2019.Get breaking news alerts and special reports. The news and stories that matter, delivered weekday mornings.
Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari speaks during a joint press conference with the German chancellor at the presidency in Abuja on Aug. 31, 2018In a last-ditch effort to stop the official declaration of a winner, top opposition challenger Atiku Abubkar demanded a halt to the proceedings, claiming that data from smart card readers used in the vote had been manipulated. His party called for fresh elections in four states: Yobe, Zamfara, Nasarawa and Borno.
As the state-by-state announcements of election results passed the halfway mark, Buhari was declared the winner in 15 of Nigeria's 36 states including its most populous ones, Lagos and Kano. Abubakar won 12, many in the largely Christian south, and the capital's territory. The death toll rose after an attack shortly before polls opened and claimed by the Islamic State West Africa Province extremist group in the northeast proved deadlier than first reported, with at least 17 people killed, head of research Cheta Nwanze told the AP on Tuesday.
"Well, we thank God that at least we finished this safely, without any hitches," the state electoral commissioner, Riskuwa Shehu, told the AP minutes before carrying results to the capital. Many Nigerians have prayed for peace. They were surprised in 2015 when President Goodluck Jonathan conceded before official results were announced giving victory to Buhari, who pulled off the first defeat of an incumbent by the opposition in the country's history."Jonathan set the benchmark on how electoral outcomes should be handled," Chris Kwaja, a senior adviser to the United States Institute of Peace, a U.S.
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