Osun Governorship Election 2026: Reflection from Dataphyte Foundation’s Election Situation Room

Dear Reader,

On Saturday, August 15, 2026, the people of Osun went to the polls to elect the governor who will govern the state for the next four years. Through the Election Integrity and Accountability Project, the Dataphyte Foundation team observed and analysed the electoral process across the pre-election, election day, and post-election periods. 

Through insight reports, data analysis, visualisations, and on-the-ground observation, our work during the Osun election focused on advancing issue-based electoral conversations grounded not in political rhetoric, but in the realities of citizens and the socio-economic issues affecting the state. Our work also increased access to election data and insights that could inform voters’ choices and shape election conversations, support advocacy, and promote transparency and accountability throughout the electoral process.

Here is a closer look at our strategic actions before, during and after the Osun State governorship election.

Have a good read!

The Lead-Up to Election Day

As the final major election before the 2027 general elections, the Osun Governorship Election attracted considerable attention from electoral stakeholders, particularly given the state’s history of political contestation and violence. Based on how tense the pre-election environment in the state was, stakeholders described Osun as the most politically violent among Nigeria's eight states' most recent off-cycle elections. This made access to credible, real-time, and non-partisan information important for citizens and other stakeholders seeking to understand the issues and dynamics shaping the election.

In the lead-up to Election Day, Dataphyte Foundation, through its media and data insight arm, Dataphyte Insight, published a series of data-driven reports on emerging issues and developments that could shape the election. These reports aimed to deepen public understanding and promote evidence-driven conversations around the election. 

Some of these reports examined voter turnout and electoral participation in Osun, including factors contributing to low citizen participation. We also examined trends in women’s participation in elections in the state, both as candidates and voters, and the factors that continue to limit women’s participation as candidates.

Another report analysed Osun’s political landscape, including trends in post-election litigation, party defections, shifting political alliances, and internal party disputes. The report analysed how these issues could influence party strategies and shape voter sentiment ahead of the August 15 poll.

The Governance Appraisal Report for Osun State assessed the performance of the incumbent governor, who had been seeking re-election since assuming office, and examined how the state and its people have fared across key development indicators, including revenue generation and sustainability, transparency and accountability, social service delivery, and safety and security. 

A few hours before the election, Dataphyte Insight published an analysis of the key numbers shaping the poll, providing voters and interested citizens with important data. The report examined the number of registered and expected voters, INEC’s logistical preparations, security deployments, and concerns about vote buying. It also highlighted key last-minute developments, including the withdrawal of the Allied Peoples’ Movement (APM) governorship candidate and the court-ordered reinstatement of the SDP candidate on the ballot.

We also profiled the candidates contesting the election, examined Osun’s electoral history across election cycles, and reviewed their manifestos and campaign promises.

Beyond pre-election reporting, Dataphyte Foundation recruited, trained, and deployed 60 observers across 60 wards in the state's 30 Local Government Areas (LGAs) to conduct on-the-ground election observation. 

Together, these activities contributed to a more informed electoral conversation, expanded access to election-related data and insights, and generated evidence that can support efforts to strengthen Nigeria’s electoral process ahead of the 2027 general elections. 

Real-Time Election Observation and Reporting

On Election Day, as voters went to the polls across Osun, the Dataphyte Foundation team worked from its Election Situation Room and in the field to observe and report the election in real time. This provided citizens, journalists, civic actors, and Nigerians in the diaspora with timely updates on what was happening across polling units.

Our observers used the Nigeria Election Data and Observatory mobile app (NEDO), powered by Dataphyte Foundation, to document the process on the ground across the 30 LGAs in Osun State. Based on their reports, Dataphyte Foundation provided real-time updates on election incidents at key stages of the electoral process, including BVAS malfunctions, vote trading, suspected underage voting, attempts to vote without a PVC, and other key issues that shaped the process. 

These updates and reported incidents were reviewed and processed in the Dataphyte Foundation Election Situation Room, then transformed into insight reports and fact cards. These outputs helped citizens follow the electoral process, understand the factors shaping it, and track incidents affecting the election's conduct. 

Midway through the election, Dataphyte Foundation published its Mid-Day Election Analysis of the Osun Governorship Election 2026, drawing on 301 field updates submitted by our observers between 6:46 a.m. and 11:05 a.m. The report provided an early assessment of voting across the 30 LGAs, highlighting orderly processes as well as delays, operational challenges, and other concerns that had delayed or disrupted voting. Read more here.

In the Situation Room, the team also tracked election results as they were reported from polling units, enabling citizens to follow them through the Dataphyte Election Portal. The portal provided access to live results and allowed users to filter results by candidate, political party, polling unit, ward, and local government area.

At the end of the voting process, Dataphyte Foundation End-of-Day Analysis drew on 431 field reports to provide a broader assessment of the voting process, from the commencement of voting through the close of polls. Read more on our findings here. 

During the result collation exercise, Dataphyte Foundation provided real-time result updates to thousands of Nigerians, including those in the diaspora, through the Dataphyte Election Portal, allowing them to follow results as EC8 forms were uploaded to the INEC Result Viewing portal (IREV) from the 3,763 polling units in the state. By making election data more accessible and easier to navigate, the portal expanded access to electoral information, supported citizen participation, and equipped citizens with data that can contribute to greater accountability in governance. 

Post-Election Engagement and Lessons for 2027

Dataphyte Foundation's work does not end when the polls close. As we close the chapter on the Osun election, our data-driven reports based on election observation and analysis will continue beyond Election Day.

The evidence collected during the Osun Governorship election now forms a record that citizens, journalists, researchers, civil society organisations, and institutions can draw on to examine what worked, what failed, and what needs to change ahead of the 2027 Presidential election.

Would you like to explore some of our analyses from the Osun election? 

Check them out here.