The Presidential Election Act of 1981 lays down the procedure for declaring the winner. If a candidate receives more than one half of the valid votes (50%), the EC will declare such candidate elected to the office of President.

Whereas no candidate has reached more than one half of the valid votes cast at the election, the Election Commission shall, where there are more than three candidates at the election, eliminate from the contest other than the candidates who received the highest and the second highest number of votes and direct the Returning Officers (ROs) to take steps to count the second and third preferences cast for the two top candidates.

Once the EC receives the results of the second and third preferences counts from the ROs of every electoral district, the Commission will add the second and third preferences as indicated in such statements, to the votes already counted and thereby ascertain which of the remaining two candidates has received the majority of the votes so counted and declare the candidate who has obtained such majority to be elected to the office of President.

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