PDP Claims Rivers South-East Senate Seat in By-Election Victory

The Independent National Electoral Commission declared a People's Democratic Party candidate the winner of the Rivers South-East senatorial by-election held on Saturday. The winning candidate secured 47,961 votes across the seven local government areas that make up the district.

The contest was triggered by the death of the previous senator in February 2026. The All Progressives Congress finished far behind in the contest, with its candidate receiving 1,647 votes.

The Action Alliance and Labour Party participated but garnered significantly lower vote totals, with 1,175 and 367 votes respectively. The electoral commission announced the results at its collation centre in Bori, Khana Local Government Area.

Sources note a discrepancy in the name of the winning candidate—some outlets refer to him as Nwoku Olaka Johnson while others list him as Olaka Nwogu. The election officer, Professor Rosemari Ogu of the University of Port Harcourt, declared the PDP candidate the winner after validating votes cast across the district.

The by-election drew participation from four political parties in total. Out of the votes cast in the seven local government areas involved—Khana, Gokana, Tai, Elem, Andoni, Oyigbo, and Opobo—the PDP's margin of victory was substantial, with the winning candidate receiving nearly 30 times the votes of the second-place finisher.