Samuel Ortom, governor of Benue, has lost his senatorial bid to Titus Zam, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate.

Rufus Shaato, the returning officer for Benue north-west senatorial election, announced the results on Monday at the INEC local government collation centre in Makurdi, the state capital.

In a race to clinch the state’s north-west senatorial seat, Zam raked in 143,151 votes to defeat Ortom who got 106,882 votes.

Ortom had earlier said he was ready to lose his bid to ensure Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP) wins the presidential election.

The Benue governor is also part of a five-member group of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) — G-5 governors — who are at loggerheads with the national leadership of the party.