Opposition Wins Nigeria's Presidential Election

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Nigerian opposition candidate Muhammadu Buhari has won the country's presidential election, beating incumbent Goodluck Jonathan by more than 2.5 million votes.

It will be the first time in the country's history that an opposition party has democratically taken control from the ruling party.

Mr Jonathan, who has led Nigeria for the last five years, conceded defeat before the result was officially declared, paving the way for a peaceful transition.

"Nobody's ambition is worth the blood of any Nigerian," he said in a televised address to the nation. "I promised the country free and fair elections. I have kept my word."

He said he had conveyed his "best wishes" to Mr Buhari and urged "those who may feel aggrieved to follow due process."

A spokesman for Mr Buhari's All Progressives Congress (APC) party praised Mr Jonathan, saying: "He will remain a hero for this move. The tension will go down dramatically."

Around 800 people died in violence that followed the last election in 2011.

Mr Buhari, a former general who ruled Nigeria in the 1980s, received 15,424,921 votes to Mr Jonathan's 12,853,162, the Independent National Electoral Commission declared.

In all he won 19 states to Mr Jonathan's 17 and the small Federal Capital Territory.

"We have put one-party state behind us," he said in a speech at his party's headquarters in the capital Abuja.

"Our country has now joined the community of nations that have used the ballot box to peacefully change an incumbent president in a free and fair election. To me this is indeed historic."

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Gallery: Nigeria Celebrates New President

Supporters of Muhammadu Buhari and his All Progressive Congress (APC) party celebrate his election victory in Kano, Nigeria

Thousands of people spill on to the streets to celebrate after Mr Buhari claimed victory in the presidential election

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Mr Buhari (R), a former military dictator, reads his acceptance speech in Abuja

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Nigeria's president-elect praised the "statesmanship" of the country's outgoing leader Goodluck Jonathan for conceding defeat in a vote that saw an incumbent lose for the first time in the nation's history

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APC supporters celebrate the victory in Jos

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Following Mr Buhari's victory, thousands of his supporters streamed onto the streets in the north of the country, waving flags, dancing and singing in celebration.

Drivers performed stunts, filling the air with thick smoke, as the crowds shouted "Sai Buhari" (Only Buhari) in celebration in the city of Kano.

In Kaduna, the crowds chanted "change, change" as hundreds of people climbed onto rooftops to watch the celebrations.

Mr Jonathan has been in charge of Africa's biggest economy since 2010 when as vice-president he took over from Umaru Yar'Adua following his death.

His People's Democratic Party (PDP) has been at the helm since the end of army rule in 1999.

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Gallery: After Weeks Of Postponement The Election Begins In Nigeria

A woman holds her voter card to register in Daura, northern Nigeria ahead of polling stations opening

A policeman drives an official of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to a polling station

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But it had been losing popularity due to a string of corruption scandals and the rise of Boko Haram's Islamist insurgency in the northeast.

It was the fourth attempt by Mr Buhari at winning the presidency - he had accused the PDP of rigging the vote in all three previous contests.

Sky's Alex Crawford said of his victory: "It is the first time there has been a democratic transfer of power in the country's post-colonial history.

"Many supporters say he represents hope, optimism. He campaigned on key issues like cracking down on insecurity, corruption, trying to do something about the economy.

"Nigeria is Africa's richest and populous nation and yet 60% of its youth are unemployed, whether they are educated or not. A hundred million Nigerians live on under a dollar a day."

Speaking to Sky News before all the results were in, the 72-year-old challenger admitted to being a little tired after an election campaign which saw him visit 35 of the country's 36 states as well as travelling to London to talk to British opinion-makers.

He spoke passionately about his desire to restore morale amongst his countrymen and women, crack down on Nigeria's rampant corruption and rout Boko Haram militants.

He has repeatedly tried to lay to rest the ghosts of his past after gaining a reputation as a hardline military ruler when he first took up the presidential reins in 1983 after an army coup.

He himself was deposed in another coup two years later and jailed.

Since then Mr Buhari says he has undergone a dramatic conversion from military dictator to democracy-lover.

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