The Vice-Chancellor of the Federal University Oye-Ekiti (FUOYE), Professor Joshua Olalekan Ogunwole, was the Returning Officer who officially declared Ademola Adeleke the winner of the 2026 Osun State governorship election.
Ogunwole announced the result at the state collation centre in Osogbo at about 7:24am on Sunday, August 16, after results from the 30 local government areas had been collated.
Adeleke, who contested on the platform of the Accord Party, secured 511,067 votes to defeat his closest challenger, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, who polled 444,815 votes.
Following the presentation and signing of the results by agents of the participating political parties, Ogunwole declared Adeleke elected for another four-year term.
“That Ademola Nurudeen-Jackson Adeleke, having satisfied the requirements of the law, is hereby declared the winner of the August 15 Governorship Election and returned elected,” he declared.
Who is Professor Ogunwole?
Born on July 23, 1967, in Ibadan, Oyo State, Ogunwole hails from Ogbomoso and is fondly called “Coach” by students, colleagues and mentees.
He began his early education at St Anne’s Primary Boarding School, Kakuri, Kaduna, before proceeding to Tafawa Balewa Memorial College, Samaru-Zonkwa.
He later attended the School of Basic Studies at Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, where he went on to earn his BSc in Agriculture, as well as MSc and PhD degrees in Soil Science.
From soil scientist to university administrator
Ogunwole has built an extensive academic and administrative career spanning several Nigerian universities, including Ahmadu Bello University, Adamawa State University, Federal University Dutsin-Ma, Bowen University and FUOYE.
Before becoming Vice-Chancellor of FUOYE, he served as the institution’s Deputy Vice-Chancellor in charge of Strategic Partnerships, Research, Innovation and Linkages.
He was also Vice-Chancellor of Bowen University between 2018 and 2023.
His academic work has largely focused on soil science, environmental management, carbon sequestration, sustainable agriculture and climate adaptation.
International academic exposure
Beyond Nigeria, Ogunwole has participated in several international academic and research programmes.
He was a Fulbright Scholar at Pennsylvania State University in the United States from 2009 to 2010. He also held a TWAS Postdoctoral Fellowship in India and an Alexander von Humboldt Fellowship at the University of Hannover, Germany.
His academic engagements have also taken him to countries including Sri Lanka, Ethiopia, Italy, Ghana, Mali, Kenya and Tunisia.
Ogunwole has published research in local and international journals and supervised postgraduate students in his field.
He is a Fellow of the African Scientific Institute and the Soil Science Society of Nigeria and belongs to several international professional organisations, including the Agronomy Society of America, Soil Science Society of America and International Union of Soil Science.
From academia to electoral duty
While Ogunwole is better known for his contributions to academia and agricultural research, his role in the Osun election placed him at the centre of one of the state’s most significant political moments.
As the State Returning Officer, he was responsible for receiving the collated results and formally declaring the candidate who secured the required votes in accordance with the law.
After the final figures were presented, Ogunwole returned Adeleke as the winner of the election.
Adeleke won in 19 of Osun’s 30 local government areas, while Oyebamiji secured victory in 11. The African Democratic Congress candidate, Najeem Salaam, finished third.
The declaration brought to an end the state-level collation of the August 15 governorship election and formally confirmed Adeleke’s re-election for another four-year term.
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