Three-term Lagos State lawmaker and actor-turned-politician, Desmond Elliot, has lost the All Progressives Congress (APC) primary election for Surulere Constituency I, ending his bid for a fourth consecutive term in the Lagos State House of Assembly.
Elliot, who has represented the constituency since 2015, reportedly lost the party ticket after a tense primary process that was overshadowed by allegations of intimidation, internal disagreements and growing political rivalry within the party structure in Surulere.
The development marks a major political setback for the lawmaker, whose political career has been closely linked to former Speaker of the House of Representatives and Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila.
Ahead of the primary, reports had indicated that Elliot was facing resistance from some political allies and stakeholders within the constituency over his re-election ambition.
Party leaders were said to have advised him to step aside in favour of another aspirant, Barakat Odunuga-Bakare, who also sought the APC ticket.
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However, Elliot reportedly declined the suggestion and proceeded with his campaign for another term.
Tensions rose further during the primary election held on Wednesday as supporters of the incumbent legislator alleged that many of them were denied access to the voting venue and intimidated by political opponents.
Earlier during the exercise, Elliot announced his withdrawal from the race, claiming his supporters had been prevented from participating despite repeated appeals to election officials.
“And of course, in all zones, they’ve been intimidating and stopping us. I want to officially announce my withdrawal from this particular race. This is my ward. If you go outside, those are my people outside,” he had said.
Members of his media team also accused unnamed actors of attempting to influence the process against the lawmaker.
“We already knew that it was not going to be a free and fair primary, which is why members of Desmond Elliot’s media team invited conventional media organisations to monitor and document the process,” a member of the team stated.
They further alleged that incidents across voting centres were documented by journalists and observers and would be made public.
As of the time of filing this report, the APC leadership in Lagos State had not issued an official response to the allegations surrounding the conduct of the Surulere primary.
