Nigerian Governor Re-Elected as Pressure on President Grows

Governors want Nigeria's vice president named acting leader in the interim because the elected president has been out of the country for medical treatment for more than 10 weeks.

Anambra state Governor Peter Obi was re-elected in a contest with so many reported irregularities that the governor himself initially refused to vote because he said thousands of his supporters were unable to cast their ballots when their names did not appear on local electoral lists.

Despite the incomplete lists and long delays at several polling stations, chief electoral officer Josiah Uwazuronye Sunday declared the governor re-elected.

"Peter Obi of the All Progressives Grand Alliance, having satisfied the requirements of the law and scored the highest number of votes, is hereby declared the winner and his return elected," said Uwazuronye.

With more than 23,000 security forces deployed in Anambra for the vote, there were no reports of major unrest in the southeast state that saw considerable post-electoral violence in 2007.