APC names Umar Hassan Augie winner of court-ordered Kebbi primary rerun
- Umar Hassan Augie won the fresh APC primary for Argungu/Augie Federal Constituency with 33,013 votes.
- His challenger Samir Salihu Felande polled 1,319 votes in Saturday's exercise across 21 wards.
- The rerun followed a Federal High Court ruling in Birnin Kebbi that nullified the earlier primary.
The All Progressives Congress (APC) has declared Umar Hassan Augie its candidate for the Argungu/Augie Federal Constituency seat in Kebbi State, after a fresh primary ordered by a Federal High Court.
Augie polled 33,013 votes to beat his only challenger, Samir Salihu Felande, who got 1,319 votes, in the exercise held on Saturday across the constituency's 21 wards.
The returning officer, Shehu Kawu Damina, who led the party's national committee for the exercise, said 44,784 delegates were registered and 34,332 votes were cast.
He declared Augie the party's flagbearer for the House of Representatives seat, saying the winner secured the highest number of votes.
Why the primary was rerun
The fresh primary followed a judgment by the Federal High Court in Birnin Kebbi on October 15, which nullified the earlier primary and gave the party two weeks to conduct a new one.
The APC said Saturday's exercise was held in line with that court order.
Augie thanked the constituents for backing him again, and also thanked Governor Nasir Idris and other party leaders in the state for supporting his candidacy. He expressed gratitude to officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the party's national headquarters supervisors who took part in the exercise.
Reports differ slightly on details. Leadership described the exercise as a by-election and named the challenger as Samir Salihu Argungu, while Channels TV, PM News, Daily Post and Naija News called it a fresh party primary and gave the name as Samir Salihu Felande. Leadership also reported that Augie won in wards 10 and 11 across both Argungu and Augie local government areas.
What happens next
With the party's ticket settled, Augie is set to carry the APC flag into the general election for the constituency. The court-ordered rerun closes a dispute over the earlier primary, though the final say on candidates rests with the courts and the electoral commission.
For voters in Argungu and Augie, the choice of who represents them in the House of Representatives now moves to the ballot, where the APC candidate will face candidates from other parties.
