PDP guber: Ortom, Useni, Bala Mohammed, Ringim, Danmarke, Ashiru, Galaudu, Fintiri, Ombugadu are winners

Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State has emerged as the 2019 governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Ortom defeated other three contestants; John Tondo, Paul Orhii and Felix Atume at the primary election.
The Chairman, PDP Electoral Panel for the state, Hajia Zainab Maina, announced that Ortom scored 2,210 votes to emerge winner, while Tondo got 475 votes and Atume and Orhii polled 44 and 10 votes respectively.
No invalid votes were recorded during the election.
According to her, the election is free, fair, peaceful and conducted in accordance with the party’s constitution.
In his acceptance speech, Ortom commended the delegates for re-electing him as the party candidate, adding that he would ensure unity among party members for the progress of PDP.
He promised to carry all aspirants along for growth and development of the state for the future generations to benefit.
Ortom promised to carry all stakeholders along in tackling insecurity in the state in order to ensure safety of lives and property.
He also urged those who lost in the contest to support the party candidates so as to ensure victory in the 2019 general elections.
Seventy-five-year-old Senator Jeremiah Useni emerged the governorship candidate  of the party in Plateau State.
Useni polled 1018 votes to  defeat 12 other candidates at the party’s primaries. 
His closest rival Johnbull Shekarau got  340 votes.
In all, 2,097 delegates from the 17 local government areas voted at the primaries.
Useni, a serving senator representing Plateau South Senatorial zone in the Senate, is former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja and a  former Minister of Transport. He was also between 1984 and 1985, the  military governor of the old Bendel state, now made up of Edo and Delta states.
He was also a very close ally of former Head of State, General Sani Abacha.
He was born February 16, 1943 in Langtang and joined the army after his early education. He rose to the post of Lt. General before retiring in 1999.
Prior to the commencement of voting, Senator Victor Lar, on behalf of the aspirants, promised  promised to support whoever emerges as the winner in Plateau state.
Useni will face incumbent Governor Simon Lalong of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who also bagged the second term ticket of his party, unopposed on Sunday.
Also, a former FCT Minister, Senator Bala Mohammed, emerged as the governorship candidate of the party in Bauchi State.
Bala defeated two other contestants, Senators Abdul Ningi and Adamu Gumba, at the keenly contested primary election.
The Chairman, PDP Electoral Panel for the state, Chief Dan Orbih, announced that Mohammed scored 1,335 votes to emerge winner, while Ningi got 802 votes and Gumba polled 15 votes.
He noted that only 32 invalid votes were recorded during the election.
According to him, the election is free, fair, peaceful and conducted in accordance with the party’s constitution.
Orbih urged PDP members to remain loyal to the party and also work hard to reclaim the state.
He commended the delegates for their resilience and well behaved conduct during the exercise.
In Jigawa State, Malam Aminu Ringim was declared winner of the election.
The Returning Officer, Mr Oladimeji Fabiyi, said Ringim polled 2,028 votes to beat three other contestant, amongst them, the first civilian governor of the state, Alhaji Ali Saad.
He said Saad secured 30 votes, Alhaji Tijani Ibrahim polled 394 votes, while Alhaji Namadi Husaini got 154 votes, adding that 62 votes cast were invalid.
Fabiyi thanked the contestants and voters for their support and cooperation to the electoral committee, which enabled it to conduct a free and fair primaries.
He said there was no winner or loser in the election as all of them belonged to the PDP family.
In his remarks, the gubernatorial flag-bearer, Ringim, called on other members of the party to support him, promising to take everybody along if elected as the state governor.
In Katsina State, Senator Lado Danmarke won the gubernatorial ticket.
The election was contested by five other aspirants that included Alhaji Ahmad Yar’Adua and former deputy governor, Alhaji Abdullahi Faskari.
Others were the former PDP gubernatorial candidate in 2015, Alhaji Musa Nashuni, Alhaji Umar Tata and Alhaji Sada Ilu.
The chairman, PDP gubernatorial primary election, Senator Bala Adamu, said that one of the aspirants, Alhaji Kabir Kofa, withdrew from the race.
He said that Danmarke scored 3,385 votes to emerge winner, Yar’Adua got 243 votes, while Faskari and Nashuni had only one vote each.
The chairman noted that Ilu and Tata had no vote, while there are 28 invalid votes during the election.
He said that the election was free, fair, peaceful and conducted in accordance with the party’s constitution.
Only Danmarke and Yar’Adua were present at the election venue while the other four aspirants shunned the venue and refused to provide agents to stand for them.
A former member of the House of Representatives, Alhaji Isah Ashiru, was elected as the governorship candidate of the party in Kaduna.
The Chairman of the PDP Governorship Primary Election Committee in the state, Mr Phillip Aivoji, on Monday in Kaduna declared Ashiru winner of the election with 1,330 votes.
He defeated three other contestants including former governor of the state, Dr Mukhtar  Ramalan-Yero, who had 36 votes.
A serving Senator,  Suleiman Hunkuyi scored 564 votes while Malam Muhammad Sani-Sidi, former Director-General of National Emergency Management  Agency (NEMA), got 560 votes to come third during the primary.
Aivoji  who declared 39 votes invalid, said 2,654 delegates from the 23 local government areas of the state participated in the process.
Ashiru had before the commencement of the election, secured the support of two aspirants, Dr. Jaafaru Sa’ad and Mohammed Bello-Umar, who dropped from the race.
Meanwhile, Sani-Sidi who conceded defeat  even before the votes were counted, had congratulated Ashiru for the victory.
In Kebbi State, Senator Isa Galaudu won the primary election to become the party’s flag bearer.
Galaudu was elected at the party’s gubernatorial primary election held at Event Centre on Gwandagbagi-Argungu road, Birnin- Kebbi, after polling a total of 1,072 votes out of the total 2,226 votes cast.
His closest rival, Alhaji Umar Tafida scored 720 votes, while Alhaji Buhari Bala and Alhaji Abubakar Gari scored 322 and 28 votes respectively.
The Chairman of the electoral panel, Alhaji Ado Datti, while declaring Galaudu as winner of the primaries, said the election was hitch-free and recorded 20 invalid votes.
Galaudu thanked party members for their support, stating that he was glad to be their preferred candidate.
He said “I will soon make my campaign manifesto to Kebbi people and it is about having an all-inclusive and responsive governance.
“We shall strive to have a united, secure and economically strong state for the prosperity of all.”
Former Adamawa State House of Assembly Speaker and Acting Governor, Alhaji Ahmadu Fintiri, emerged winner of the exercise in the North-East state.
Fintiri scored 1,656 votes to defeat four other candidates.
Declaring the result on Monday, the Returning Officer for the election, Alhaji Adamu Shuaibu, said Fintiri scored 1,656 votes, followed by Amb. Mohammed Jameel, who scored 465 votes.
Mr Bala Ngilari scored 78 votes, Mr Aliyu Umar scored eight votes, while Dr Umar Ardo scored only one votes.
Two other contestants, Alhaji Sa’ad Tahir and Alhaji Adamu Modibbo withdrew from the primaries.
 
“I Adamu Shu’aibu, returning officer of the Adamawa PDP Governorship Primary election, wish to announced that the election was transparent, free and fair.
 
” And after counting the votes, I wish to announce that Umar Ahmadu Fintiri haven scored the highest votes of 1,656 is hereby declared winner of the Adamawa PDP  Governorship Primary Election,” Shu’aibu said.
 
Addressing his supporters shortly after the announcement, Fintiri thanked the party’s stakeholders, especially Atiku Abubakar, Bamanga Tukur and Prof. Jibrin Aminu among others.
 
Fintiri also appreciated the effort of the delegates and promised to bring meaningful development into the state.
 
“If elected I will guaranteed the welfare of people of the state, especially the civil servants. And I will make the retirement to be blessing rather than curse as being experienced in the state,” Fintiri said.
 
He called on the party’s members to support him to capture the Dougirei Government House, Yola, comes 2019.
In Nasarawa State, 40-year-old member of the House of Representatives, Emmanuel David Ombugadu, emerged the candidate of the party.
Emmanuel Anyanwu, Chairman of the state PDP Primary Committee, announced the result about 5:30 am on Monday at Keffi Local Government secretariat,  venue of the primary.
Emmanuel Anyanwu, Chairman of the state PDP Primary Committee announced the result at about 5:30 am on Monday at Keffi Local Government secretariat,  venue of the primary.
According to him, Ombugadu got 745 votes to defeat his closest rival Solomon Ewuga who got 551 votes.
He, therefore, declared Ombugadu as the winner of the election and the candidate of PDP in the state.
Of the 1,502 delegates, only 1,490 were accredited to vote.
Ombugadu thanked  the delegates and leaders of the party for the confidence reposed on him and promised not to let them down.
He also appealed to all members of the party to join hands with him to  ensure victory for  the party in  the 2019 election.
Ombugadu graduated from Government College, Keffi in 1995 and went on to study Economics at the University of Jos, graduating in 2001.