Anambra LG poll: No automatic victory for sole chairmanship candidates — ANSIEC

The Anambra State Independent Electoral Commission (ANSIEC) has announced that sole chairmanship candidates in the upcoming local government elections on August 29, 2026, will not secure victory automatically. During a press briefing on Wednesday, ANSIEC Commissioner for Information and Publicity, Sir Tony Chinedu, clarified this rule at a briefing for journalists.

Even if only one candidate is contesting, they must still secure at least two-thirds of the "Yes" votes cast to be declared the winner. If a majority of voters opt to vote "No," the election is declared inconclusive, and the process starts anew with party primaries. This rule does not apply to councillorship elections, where candidates are selected through the standard voting procedure.

ANSIEC has screened 22 candidates for the 21 chairmanship positions, while 346 candidates have been vetted for the 326 councillorship wards. The commission is reportedly 90% prepared for the elections, with ad hoc staff recruited and trained, and non-sensitive materials already evacuated to designated sites. Despite a lawsuit by 56 councillors seeking to delay the council elections, Chinedu assured that the ANSIEC would not be deterred and that the scheduled poll would proceed as planned.