Bayelsa State is a small
state in the
South South mainly populated by
Ijaw peoples; although its oil reserves make it one of the most resource-rich states in the nation, Bayelsa has faced challenges in security and
environmental degradation in large part due to years of systemic corruption and
illegal oil bunkering. Politically, the state's early 2019 elections were categorized as the continuation of the PDP's dominance albeit with the APC making considerable gains by gaining
one senate and
two House of Representatives seats. The APC also gained ground in the
assembly election and Bayelsa also was the state that swung the most towards
Buhari in the
presidential election, although that could be chalked up to former Governor
Goodluck Jonathan no longer being PDP nominee. Later in 2019, the swing towards the APC dramatically increased as its gubernatorial nominee
David Lyon won by a large margin but Diri was declared victor after Lyon was disqualified before the inauguration. == Polling ==