Desmond Elliot, the lawmaker representing Surulere Constituency I in the Lagos State House of Assembly, has lost his bid to secure the All Progressives Congress (APC) ticket for another term in the assembly.
In the primary election held on Wednesday, Elliot was defeated by Barakat Odunuga-Bakare, an aspirant reportedly backed by Femi Gbajabiamila, the Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu.
Odunuga-Bakare secured a total of 11,385 votes, while Elliot polled only 270 votes across the wards in the constituency.
According to the ward-by-ward results circulated in a viral video, Odunuga-Bakare scored 1,956 votes at Owolewa Open Field, off Randle Avenue, while Elliot managed just 10 votes.
She also recorded a dominant victory in the Iponri/Eric Moore ward, polling 1,805 votes against Elliot’s six votes.
At the Akinhanmi/Cole ward, Odunuga-Bakare secured 2,191 votes, while Elliot polled 82 votes.
The APC aspirant further widened the margin at Gbaja Stadium ward, where she secured 523 votes while Elliot failed to record a single vote.
In the Yaba/Ojuelegba ward, Odunuga-Bakare polled 980 votes, compared to Elliot’s three votes.
Elliot’s only notable performance came at the Shitta/Ogunlana ward, where he scored 270 votes against Odunuga-Bakare’s 169 votes.
The incumbent lawmaker had been seeking a fourth term in the Lagos Assembly after previously serving three consecutive terms representing the constituency.
Political observers, however, linked Elliot’s defeat to his reported fallout with Gbajabiamila, his former political ally and godfather, particularly over the role he allegedly played during the 2025 impeachment crisis involving former Speaker Mudashiru Obasa.
