PDP candidate, Ukpukpen wins Cross River bye-election

Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mrs. Abbey Ukpukpen, has won the Saturday’s Obudu State Constituency bye-election into the Cross River State House of Assembly, NAN reports.

Mrs. Abbey Ukpukpen, widow of a former member of the state assembly, Stephen Ukpukpen, who died in May, floored her closest rival, Ishamali Bendel, of the All Progressives Congress (APC), to win the keenly contested bye-election.

Mr. Ukpukpen’s seat was declared vacant following his death.

The State Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Dr Frankland Briyai, announced the result on Sunday in Obudu, Headquarters of Obudu Local Government.

According to Briyai, the PDP candidate scored 12,712 votes to beat her closest rival, Mr Ishamali Bendel, of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who scored 4,345 votes.

Other results included: Awafang Angiating of Mega Party of Nigeria (MPN), who scored 132 votes and Agwupuye Umeka of African Democratic Party (ADP), who scored 114 votes to place third and fourth, respectively.

“Total valued votes 17,303; rejected votes 607; total votes cast 17,910; total number of registered voters 69,908, ‘’ he said.

The REC commended the electorate for the peaceful conduct of the exercise and urged them to replicate the same disposition in the 2019 general elections.

Mrs Abbey Ukpukpen, a staff of the University of Calabr, will now replace her late husband in the state assembly.

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