With results in on Wednesday from half of the 24 states in which governorship elections were held, the ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP) held on to seven but lost two - Ogun in the southwest and Nasarawa in the centre.
But it won Kano, the most populous state in the north, from the opposition and swept all assembly seats in the northern state of Sokoto.
Lagos, the commercial capital, remained the southwestern stronghold of the opposition Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) as expected while the northern state of Yobe remained in the hands of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP).The state governorship races, which began on Tuesday, are the final stage in elections which have seen some of the worst political violence in years in Nigeria.
Rioting left hundreds dead in the mostly Mohammedan north last week after president Goodluck Jonathan
... 14th President of Nigeria. He was Governor of Bayelsa State from 9 December 2005 to 28 May 2007, and was sworn in as Vice President on 29 May 2007. Jonathan is a member of the ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP). He is a lover of nifty hats, which makes him easily recognizable unless someone else in the room is wearing a neat chapeau...
, a southern Christian, beat his northern rival, Muhammadu Buhari, in the presidential vote.
The state governors are among the most powerful politicians in Nigeria, wielding influence over national policy and in some cases controlling budgets larger than small African nations, and the ruling party is keen to maintain its strong regional grip.