19-Year-Old APC Candidate, Samuel Olubari, Wins Councillorship Seat in Rivers State

Miss Samuel Olubari, a 19-year-old candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has made history by emerging as the youngest councillor in Rivers State after winning the councillorship election for Bangha Ward 7, Khana Local Government Area.

The election, held on Saturday, August 30, 2025, took place across 6,866 polling units in 319 wards, producing elected local government chairpersons and councillors to replace administrators who had been appointed in April following a court ruling.

The exercise came six months and two days after the Supreme Court nullified the October 5, 2024, council elections conducted by the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC).

Announcing results on Sunday, RSIEC declared the APC as the dominant winner, sweeping 20 out of 23 local government areas, while the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) secured victories in Obio/Akpor, Ogba/Egbema/Ndon, and Port Harcourt City.

The APC also clinched council seats in Ahoada East, Asari Toru, Ikwerre, Bonny, Degema, Eleme, Etche, Gokana, Khana, Ogu/Bolo, Opobo/Nkoro, Okrika, Emohua, and Akuku Tor LGAs.

Miss Olubari’s emergence is being celebrated not only as a personal triumph but also as a landmark achievement for youth inclusion in Nigerian politics. Her victory is being seen as a direct fruit of the “Not Too Young to Run” movement, which has been advocating for the participation of young people in governance.

The “Not Too Young to Run Bill”, signed into law by former President Muhammadu Buhari in 2018, lowered the constitutional age requirements for elective offices, thereby enabling younger Nigerians to vie for political positions.

Days before the election, Olubari was presented to party leaders and stakeholders by the APC Khana Chairman, Hon. Barile Ebenezer, during a ward-to-ward sensitisation campaign.