Nigerians participate in gubernatorial elections as the governing party tries to make up lost ground in important states.

Nigerians began voting on Saturday in delayed governorship polls, amid reports of electoral violence and voter disenfranchisement. Labour candidate Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, running to be governor of Lagos state, said one of his agents was shot and killed in Lagos. Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) spokesman Festus Okoye said the commission is collating and harvesting reports from the different states of the federation before taking a decision. Reports of disenfranchisement continued Saturday, as around 6,000 residents of Victoria Garden City in Lagos said their polling station had been moved outside of their gated complex without notice and claimed electoral staff left before a single resident had cast a vote. The gubernatorial race will be decided in 28 of Nigeria's 36 states as the ruling party scrambles to regain lost ground in key states, but all eyes will be on the tense contest for control of the country's wealthy Lagos State.
Nigeria's presidential elections on February 25 were widely criticized for widespread delays, outbreaks of violence and attempts at voter suppression. The battle for Lagos, Nigeria's commercial hub and one of Africa's largest cities, has typically been a two-party race that has never been won by the opposition. However, Peter Obi caused shockwaves when it emerged he beat President-Elect Bola Tinubu in his Lagos home turf but placed third in the presidential poll. Obi is the first presidential candidate from the opposition to win in Lagos and his popularity with young people could be the game changer in the Lagos gubernatorial poll. Fifteen candidates are seeking to unseat incumbent Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of the ruling All Progressives Congress party, but only two are viewed as real threats to his reelection. Labor Party's Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour is riding on Obi's wave and has gained momentum following his party's surprise win in Tinubu's stronghold, The People's Democratic Party's Azeez Olajide Adediran, also known as Jandor, is another strong contender aiming to clinch the Lagos seat for his party for the first time.