Professor Joshua Olalekan Ogunwole was the official who announced Ademola Adeleke as the winner of the 2026 Osun State governorship election on Sunday.
Ogunwole, the Vice-Chancellor of the Federal University Oye-Ekiti, declared the result at the state collation centre at about 7:24am.
Adeleke, who contested on the platform of the Accord Party, polled 511,067 votes to defeat his closest challenger, the All Progressives Congress candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, who scored 444,815 votes.
The returning officer subsequently declared Adeleke elected for another four-year term after the results had been presented and signed by the agents of the participating political parties.
Declaring the result, Ogunwole said,“That Ademola Nurudeen-Jackson Adeleke, having satisfied the requirements of the law, is hereby declared the winner of the August 15 Governorship Election and returned elected.”
But who is the professor behind the declaration?
Born in Ibadan
Ogunwole was born on July 23, 1967, in Ibadan, Oyo State, and hails from Ogbomoso.
He is fondly called “Coach” by his students, colleagues and mentees.
He began his education at St Anne’s Primary Boarding School, Kakuri, Kaduna, before proceeding to Tafawa Balewa Memorial College, Samaru-Zonkwa.
He later attended the School of Basic Studies at Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.
Soil scientist turned university administrator
Ogunwole holds a BSc in Agriculture, as well as MSc and PhD degrees in Soil Science from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.
His academic career has taken him through several Nigerian universities, including Ahmadu Bello University, Adamawa State University, Federal University Dutsin-Ma, Bowen University and the Federal University Oye-Ekiti.
Before becoming Vice-Chancellor of FUOYE, he served as the university’s Deputy Vice-Chancellor in charge of Strategic Partnerships, Research, Innovation and Linkages.
He previously served as Vice-Chancellor of Bowen University between 2018 and 2023.
International academic experience
Ogunwole has also had extensive international research and academic engagements.
He was a Fulbright Scholar at Pennsylvania State University in the United States between 2009 and 2010.
He was also a TWAS Postdoctoral Fellow in India and held an Alexander von Humboldt Fellowship at the University of Hannover, Germany.
His international engagements also took him to institutions and research programmes in Sri Lanka, Ethiopia, Italy, Ghana, Mali, Kenya and Tunisia.
His research interests include soil science, environmental management, carbon sequestration, sustainable agriculture and climate adaptation.
A professor with global research links
Ogunwole has published research in local and international journals and has supervised postgraduate students in his field.
He is a Fellow of the African Scientific Institute and the Soil Science Society of Nigeria, while also belonging to international professional bodies including the Agronomy Society of America, Soil Science Society of America and International Union of Soil Science.
He has also been involved in research and development initiatives focused on agriculture, soil and water conservation, irrigation and sustainable environmental management.
From the classroom to Osun’s election collation
On Sunday, however, the professor stepped away from his familiar academic role to perform a crucial electoral duty.
As the State Returning Officer for the Osun governorship election, Ogunwole was responsible for formally announcing the aggregate result and declaring the candidate who satisfied the legal requirements as winner.