“From 1999 to every election after, Osun people have voted for human beings they trust, not party labels. That same instinct will carry Ademola Adeleke back to office in 2026.”
Osun politics has never been tied to any party’s destiny. What has shaped our elections, from the return to democracy in 1999 till today, is the simple but powerful way Osun people choose their leaders: they follow the individual, not the party. They study character, they watch behaviour, they weigh sincerity, and then they make their decision. This is why Governor Ademola Adeleke stands in a very strong position ahead of 2026. His popularity isn’t tied to party machinery. It is tied to people; their trust in him, their love for him and their belief in how he governs.
To appreciate why this matters, we must walk through every governorship election Osun has ever held.
1999 set the tone. Adebisi Akande of the Alliance for Democracy won, not because AD owned Osun, but because the people trusted him at that moment. AD as a party did not have the kind of national structure that could force victory, yet Osun voters backed Akande overwhelmingly.
In 2003, the same voters turned around and handed victory to Olagunsoye Oyinlola of the PDP. That willingness to dump the incumbent and the party that brought him showed that Osun voters are not married to any political platform. Once they believe another candidate represents their hope better, they move.
The 2007 election further exposed the fluid nature of Osun politics. Although Oyinlola was initially returned as winner, the Court of Appeal later declared Rauf Aregbesola the duly elected governor. Aregbesola’s eventual emergence wasn’t about party strength. It was about the power of his personal following and the determination of supporters who believed in him beyond party boundaries.
By 2014, Aregbesola had enough goodwill from ordinary Osun citizens to win re-election decisively. Again, it wasn’t APC’s popularity that delivered that victory. It was his personal hold on the electorate.
Then came 2018, one of the tightest elections in Nigeria’s recent history. That contest went down to a controversial rerun and court processes that dragged for months. The closeness of the race showed something important: no party in Osun has a guaranteed base strong enough to dominate elections. It is always the candidate that swings the tide not the political platform.
And then, of course, 2022 changed the atmosphere entirely. Ademola Adeleke didn’t just win; he brought back the human connection that had been missing in Osun politics for years. He defeated an incumbent governor, took 17 local governments, and did it through a blend of empathy, relatability and grassroots presence. People see him as one of their own: accessible, warm, humane and deeply connected to everyday realities. Those qualities, not the party he belongs to, shaped the outcome of that election.
Now, with all these elections stacked together, the pattern is unmistakable: Osun people follow the person who touches their lives, not the symbol on the ballot. They have jumped between parties repeatedly AD in 1999, PDP in 2003 and 2007, ACN/APC in 2010 and 2014, back to PDP in 2022. No party has ever held the hearts of Osun citizens permanently. Only individuals have.
That is why the 2026 race is clearer than many think. No matter what party platforms look like by then, one fact will stand firm: Ademola Adeleke’s personal appeal, performance, accessibility and emotional connection to the people give him an advantage that no opponent can easily match. He represents a style of leadership that Osun voters understand a governor who carries the people along, speaks their language, laughs with them, stands with them and shows them results they can see and feel.
In a state where elections have always depended on personal credibility rather than party strength, Adeleke is the kind of candidate who naturally aligns with Osun’s democratic character. That is why, judging by every historical pattern from 1999 till date, he remains the strongest favourite going into 2026. Parties may rise or fall, alliances may shift, and national politics may get noisy, but one thing remains consistent: Osun people will return the leader they trust — and that leader today is Ademola Adeleke.
I’m OneForAll, Babawale Jamiu POPOOLA is my name, and I writes from Erin-Osun, Irepodun Local Government of Osun State.
