Following the conclusion of the presidential election, United Kingdom Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has extended congratulations to President-elect Bola Tinubu.
“The UK-Nigeria relationship remains strong. I look forward to working together to grow our security and trade ties, opening up opportunities for businesses and creating prosperity in both our countries,” Sunak said on Twitter.
The UK and Nigeria have maintained a longstanding relationship since Nigeria gained independence over 62 years ago.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared Tinubu the winner in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
After a hard-fought battle, Tinubu, a 70-year-old candidate from the All Progressives Congress (APC), secured the highest number of votes with 8,794,726, which was nearly two million more votes than his closest rival, Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who received 6,984,520 votes. Peter Obi, the candidate of the Labour Party (LP), finished the race with 6,101,533 votes after galvanizing young voters in less than a year, in a manner that some have described as unprecedented.