Nigeria minority party keeps state after poll re-run

ONITSHA, Nigeria (Reuters) - A minority party kept hold of the governorship of Nigeria's eastern Anambra state on Sunday after a partial re-run of a flawed election that was seen as a test of organisers 18 months before presidential polls. Authorities ordered parts of the local vote to be repeated after an official from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) distributed the wrong voting materials to polling stations. He was later handed over to the police for investigation. Past elections in the continent's most populous country and biggest oil producer have been marred by accusations of widespread fraud. But international observers largely praised INEC for its handling of 2011 national elections, saying they were the fairest since the end of military rule in 1999. Voting materials arrived late in other parts of Anambra state for the November 16 election and hundreds turned out to vote but complained that their names were not on the register. After the re-run, Governor Willy Obianyo of the All Progressives Grand Alliance party was declared winner. The country's main opposition All Progressives Congress had called for the vote to be cancelled in the entire state but INEC rejected the plea.