Muhammadu Buhari has won Nigeria’s presidential polls, in the country’s first election victory by the opposition.
His party said his opponent, the incumbent President Goodluck Jonathan, admitted defeat and congratulated him.
Gen Buhari was ahead of Mr Jonathan by at least two million votes.
Observers have generally praised the election but there have been allegations of fraud, which some fear could lead to protests and violence.
However, a spokesman for Gen 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.”
“Anyone who tries to foment trouble on the account that they have lost the election will be doing so purely on his own,” the spokesman added in quotes carried by Reuters.
Results at 18:00 local time (18:00 GMT) showed Gen Buhari with 15 million votes, and Mr Jonathan with 12.8 million votes.
Mr Jonathan had led Nigeria since 2010, initially as acting leader before winning elections in 2011.
Nigeria has suffered from several attacks by the Islamist militant group Boko Haram, which has killed thousands of people in its drive to establish an Islamic state.
Many voters have said that they believe Gen Buhari is better positioned to defeat Boko Haram. BBC
