write an essay on the 2023 presidential election in nigeria

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Nigeria election 2023: what are the issues and why is this vote different?

People will go the polls on Saturday in what is seen as a potential turning point for Africa’s most populous country

When do Nigerians go to the polls and what are they voting for?

On Saturday, up to 94 million voters in Africa’s most populous country and biggest economy will cast their ballots to elect lawmakers and the president. It’s the seventh election since the end of military rule in 1999, and an exercise involving enormous expenditure and logistics, keenly watched across the continent and beyond.

Why does the election matter?

Nigeria faces a host of serious challenges: growing insecurity, a struggling economy, massive debt, deep poverty and a corrupt political class – and this moment is genuinely seen as a potential turning point, with hopes that a fair and credible poll may alter the country’s trajectory for the better, allowing its youthful, creative and entrepreneurial energy to be harnessed for the good of all. Alternatively, it could lead Nigeria towards a very difficult future.

Nigeria is regionally dominant and a keystone state in Africa. Matthew Page, an expert at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace , describes the election as a chance for Nigeria’s democratic process “to send a proof-of-life message to the world”. With democracy in retreat across the continent, some analysts say a good election in Nigeria would revitalise the hopes of democratic reformers in other countries, with many of the issues resonating elsewhere.

Everyone recognises that the next decade is vital for the country, which is forecast to become the third -most populous in the world, behind India and China, by 2045.

What have been the issues for voters in the buildup to the vote?

The most obvious are security, with violent crime that was once restricted to more marginal areas now reaching into major urban centres, and the economy, as most people are considerably worse off now than they were in 2015 when the outgoing president, Muhammadu Buhari, started the first of his two terms. Corruption is also an issue for voters.

In recent weeks, a self-inflicted crisis after a poorly executed effort by authorities to replace the country’s banknotes has brought acute hardship and inconvenience. With naira currency so scarce, the poorest simply cannot buy basic foodstuffs or travel to vote. Many are adapting, but only slowly. In the meantime, “people are cashless and desperate … That is adding to tensions around the poll,” says Nnamdi Obasi , the International Crisis Group’s Nigeria-based expert.

What is different about this election?

A lot. One big difference is the size of the electorate, with 10 million more registered voters than in 2019, including many who are very young. A second big change from earlier polls is that the two main parties that have dominated Nigerian politics for decades – the ruling All Progressives Congress and the People’s Democratic party – have been challenged by a third credible contender: Peter Obi is an energetic 61-year-old who appears a generation younger than his main rivals, Bola Tinubu and Atiku Abubakar, who are in their 70s and look increasingly frail. More than anything, Obi represents a new kind of politics, reaching out beyond Nigeria’s sectarian and ethnic divides with the promise of dynamic, clean and efficient governance. Whether he will be able to fulfil that if he wins is another question. A final difference is new voting technology, which should cut down on rigging.

Many opinion polls have given Obi a substantial lead, and there is no doubt that the wealthy businessman turned politician has run a very effective campaign. However, analysts and ruling party officials say Obi may have difficulty converting “virtual” support on social media and among the young into enough votes to beat the vast patronage networks, deep pockets and powerful political organisation of his rivals.

Much depends on turnout, which has been woefully low in recent elections. Last year, before Obi launched his campaign, a survey found that just 39% of Nigerians felt close to a political party, a sharp decline compared with 2015. If more than two voters in five reach the voting booths, this will be seen as a boost to Obi’s chances, possibly signalling a wave of support.

When will we get a result?

Official results could take up to five days to be announced after the polls close, but the turnout should become clearer much earlier, along with some of the counts. This should give a sense within 36 to 48 hours of who will lead Nigeria.

Nigerian electoral law makes a runoff unlikely, as the winning candidate needs only a simple majority, provided they get 25% of the vote in at least two-thirds of the 36 states.

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Presidential elections in Nigeria: alarm over violence and security likely to drive vote

PhD, Research Fellow at IFRA-Nigéria, University of Ibadan

Research associate NigeriaWatch & IFRA-Nigeria, Institut de recherche pour le développement (IRD)

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With Nigeria’s presidential elections slated for Saturday 25 February, the country’s independent electoral commission’s offices have suffered several attacks in recent weeks. Concerns over security have been such that its head, Mahmood Yakubu, expressed doubts on 9 January whether the elections could take place.

Already, in early November, the US embassy had decided to repatriate its “non-essential” diplomatic personnel from the federal capital, Abuja, following a security briefing that was kept confidential. The move prompted a good number of diplomats and businessmen to flee at the time. In turn, the Nigerian press’ reaction ranged from criticism of Washington to alarmist views about rising violence .

Security, once again, is at the heart of the political debate in Africa’s most populous country .

The three main candidates

Incumbent president Muhammadu Buhari, a retired general now in his 80s, was elected in 2015 and re-elected in 2019 on the twin promises of ending corruption and insecurity in the country.

His record in office is being defended by Bola Ahmed Tinubu, candidate of Buhari’s party, the All Progressive Congress (APC). Officially 70 years old, Tinubu is the former governor of Lagos (1999-2007), whose corruption cases made headlines in the 1990s. There are 18 candidates in total, and Tinubu’s main opponent is Abubakar Atiku, 76, of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), in power between 1999 and 2015. For the first eight years of that period, Atiku was vice president. Peter Obi of the Labour Party, 61, has a measure of momentum and enjoys support among the younger generation, dubbed the “Obidient” . As they stand, the polls currently available don’t seem particularly reliable.

In Nigeria, there is an unspoken rule that a northern (predominantly Muslim) president should be succeeded by a southern (predominantly Christian) president. This alternation, which has been in place for 24 years, would mean that the president elected in 2023 would be from the south and Christian.

However, the southern candidate, Tinubu, is a Muslim, as are his main northern opponent, Atiku, and the current president, Buhari. Tinubu, has a Muslim running mate, forming a “Muslim-Muslim” ticket. Atiku, on the other hand, is running with a southern Christian. The candidacy of the southern Christian Peter Obi, whose running mate is Muslim, would look ideal on paper if he were not also Igbo, an ethnic group from the South-East (15 to 18% of the total population of the country), sometimes associated with the ex-secessionists of Biafra . How, then, will Nigerians react to this break with traditional patterns?

Lessons from past elections

Since independence in 1960 , Nigeria’s political history has been marked by alternating periods of “republican” rule and autocracies often installed through military coups. The current political system – the fourth republic – will have its seventh consecutive presidential election in February.

In Nigerian history, electoral periods tend to be marred by instability and violence. While the first election in 1999 was conducted peacefully, President Obasanjo’s re-election in 2003 was more eventful , with many observers describing it as fraudulent .

Between 2007 and 2022, there were more than 3,000 election-related deaths, according to Nigeria Watch . However, no pattern holds true from one election to the next . For example, in the 2007 elections which EU observers considered “unreliable” , the violence was mainly caused by intra-party disputes for resources and positions, particularly within the PDP. In 2011, more violence broke out after the vote , especially following the results obtained by then-incumbent president Goodluck Jonathan (PDP) in the north, which appeared to favour his opponent and future president, Muhammadu Buhari.

In 2015, Buhari’s victory as leader of the APC – whose broom logo embodies the ambition to clean up the country after 16 years of PDP rule – was also followed by violence, again in the north. The 2019 election was less violent, although local clashes took place. The election was then postponed due to delays in the delivery of election materials.

This year, the vote is expected to be partly electronic, which raises new challenges. With the country’s notoriously unreliable electrical system , polling stations will have to rely on petrol-powered generators. And given refined fuels are running short , it is possible that the 2023 election will be postponed .

Insecurity as a key issue

Alongside inflation and the cost of living, insecurity is one of the subjects most dealt with by the candidates of the various parties.

Kidnappings, robberies and other criminal acts are frequent, and hundreds of deaths per year are caused by terrorist violence in the north, conflicts over territorial resources in the centre, and oil in the south .

The three main candidates propose more or less the same thing: more police and military personnel, and more use of technology.

There are two problems with these proposals. First, the idea of increasing both numbers and budgets is not new. Under Buhari, the military budget has increased significantly , from 4 trillion to 16 trillion Naira (N), or about N30 billion, from the last year of Goodluck Jonathan’s five-year term to Buhari’s. However, this money have failed to materialise on the ground after middlemen diverted some of it .

Second, it is not even certain that increasing the number of police or military personnel will reduce insecurity. On the one hand, increasing the number of police officers will presumably lead to an increase in arrests and thus boost crime statistics. On the other hand, police officers and military personnel are among the first perpetrators of violence .

While police violence has long been decried, with almost every Nigerian having a personal story to tell, it has attracted particular attention in 2020. Faced with repeated and unpunished abuses by a police unit, Nigerian youths took to the streets, giving rise to the #EndSARS movement , named after the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS). At least 200 protesters lost their lives to the cause of more peaceful forces, prompting the disbanding of the brigade.

As for the military, they have caused more deaths than the Boko Haram terrorists they’re tasked with fighting. According to Nigeria Watch , armed forces are responsible for 55% of the victims of the conflict spanning between 1 January 2007 and 31 December 2019. This is due to a lack of discernment in their actions, which are sometimes more akin to retaliation than targeted actions, as well as poorly thought out aerial bombing .

Corruption, the lack of training within the police, as well cooperation between the police and the military, partly explain the country’s critical security situation. It is not certain that boosting budgets or providing new equipment to these personnel will improve the situation.

What to expect from the 2023 elections?

The two main candidates, political veterans in their 70s, are not particularly popular. Nigerians seem resigned in advance, making abstention and apathy the likely winners of the election this year.

As the researcher Corentin Cohen reminds us, however, electoral violence in Nigeria is not limited to the election period itself . It can appear as early as the party primaries, and extend right through the proclamation of the results. Thus even if there is no pattern of electoral violence, the security situation will be closely watched at least until the transition at the end of May 2023.

This article was originally published in French

• The Conversation France
• Nigeria politics
• Nigeria elections
• Nigeria police
• Electoral violence

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Understanding the 2023 Nigerian Presidential and National Assembly Elections

Nigeria’s next elected president will lead the country into celebrating 63 years as an independent nation on 1 October 2023. In that time, Nigerians have seen attempts at democracy interrupted three times, but democracy has been the system of government for the last 24 years, with the 25 February 2023 polls the seventh since 1999. In that time, Nigeria has witnessed two presidents stand down after serving the constitutional limit of two terms (2007 and 2023) as well as an electoral defeat for an incumbent (2015).

For the presidential and national assembly elections on 25 February 2023, CDD deployed over 4,900 trained and accredited observers to systematically monitor the polls across all 36 states of the federation and the federal capital territory (FCT). These insights, supported by analysis by our data clerks, the work of fact-checkers and social media monitors, and the expertise and input of leading analysts provide the basis for this report on the elections. The CDD Election Analysis Centre (EAC) analytical approach was anchored on providing deep insights into how six sets of interconnected variables namely Identity, Insecurity, Institutions, Information Disorder, Intra and Inter Party Contestations and Infrastructure shaped the outcome of the elections. Based on data generated on these interrelated issues, four key themes emerged prominent- election day operational challenges and the use of technology, violence and voter suppression, voter behaviour and the influence of money, and online falsehoods. These four key issues provide reflections on emerging trends from the election process, as well as recommendations for improving future processes in the short, medium and long time.

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How Nigerian youth are galvanising for upcoming presidential vote

More than a third of Nigeria’s 93.4 million registered voters are young people who are gearing up to vote after years of low turnouts. What has changed?

Lagos, Nigeria – Onyinye Odinmah is excited about voting for the first time as Nigeria’s presidential election nears.

After two months of long waits at the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) office in Shomolu, Lagos, she secured a biometric Permanent Voters Card (PVC), becoming one of a record 10 million new registered voters ahead of the February 25 election.

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Of that number, 84 percent are aged 18 to 34, according to INEC. Young people in that demographic represent more than a third of 93.4 million registered voters – the highest compared with previous elections .

“I didn’t get my PVC and [didn’t] vote in the last election [in 2019] because I felt they already knew what the outcome would be, and our votes do not count,” Odinmah, a 26-year-old guidance counsellor based in Lagos, told Al Jazeera.

“It’s different this time because I participated in EndSARS [protests of October 2020]. I felt there was no need to start complaining but to do the right thing [vote],” she added.

A tipping point

Nigeria has one of the highest population growth rates globally and more than two-thirds of its citizens are below the age of 30.

Some refused to vote or even register to do so in previous election cycles for multiple reasons ranging from fear of violence during elections to a trust deficit in state institutions and others.

The 2019 presidential election witnessed the lowest turnout since Nigeria’s return to democratic government in 1999 – only a third of registered voters showed up at polling units.

But it followed a pattern of routinely low participation in the process – only twice has voter turnout reached or surpassed 50 percent of total registered voters since Nigeria’s first presidential elections in 1979.

But now, an increasing number of Nigerians, especially those who have become eligible to vote since the 2019 general elections, seem willing to do so , more than ever before.

Nigeria has also suffered two recessions in the eight years of the Muhammadu Buhari presidency, a situation worsened by incessant fuel scarcity , an energy deficit and cash shortages .

That has led to many seeking change.

But the October 2020 nationwide protests against the extrajudicial torture and killings by the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) police unit, which trended as #EndSARS on social media, spearheaded by young people has been pinpointed as a tipping point.

At least a dozen people were killed and an unknown number of others wounded – according to Amnesty International – after the army opened fire on protesters as they sang the national anthem at a known national landmark in an upscale Lagos neighbourhood.

The massacre remains etched in the minds of many Nigerians, especially as police brutality and impunity continue to date.

Since then, young Nigerians have been mobilising online and offline due to civic education from civil society organisations and other volunteer communities.

“It [#EndSARS protests] underscored for young people the need for direct engagement with the political and electoral system to reform and get it to be responsive to their needs,” Ikemesit Effiong, head of research at Lagos-based geopolitical consultancy SBM Intelligence, told Al Jazeera.

The widespread discontent with the state of governance has also galvanised the youth to vote after lecturers in public universities went on strike for eight months last year because of a wage dispute with the authorities.

It was the 16th strike in 23 years – much to the chagrin of students nationwide. According to INEC, 40 percent of the newly registered voters are students.

“It is now clear to young people that elections do have consequences, and that era of sitting at home on elections day, watching TV, and playing football rather than exercising their civic responsibility is now over,” Stanley Achonu, country director for ONE Campaign, told Al Jazeera.

‘The presence of Peter Obi’

Ahead of the polls, the traditional dominance of Nigeria’s two parties – the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) and the main opposition People’s Democratic Party (PDP) since Nigeria’s return to democratic rule in 1999 – is being strongly challenged for the first time.

Last May, Peter Obi, a two-time governor of the southeastern state of Anambra, left the PDP for the lesser-known Labour Party (LP) to challenge flagbearers of the two major parties: Ahmed Bola Tinubu of APC and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar of PDP.

A fourth candidate, the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP)’s Rabiu Kwankwaso , is also seen as a wildcard in the presidential race.

Obi, a wealthy businessman, has long gained a reputation for being frugal and accountable. His message of prudent management of national resources has resonated with many young people who see his opponents as symbolic of the established order in Nigeria where corruption seems endemic.

Analysts say Obi’s emergence has galvanised hitherto apathetic voters to participate in the country’s electoral process.

“The presence of Peter Obi on the ballot is a significant investment in political education which has driven voter registrations to record levels and a motivated lower income class, which will lead to a rise in turnout,” said Effiong.

The role of social media

Young Nigerians have long relied on social media to get information and gauge public opinion as smartphone penetration rates increase and internet connectivity costs decrease in the country. In 2015, the APC co-opted social media for campaigns that helped end the PDP’s 16-year grip on democratic power.

During the #EndSARS demonstrations, social media played a vital role in getting young people on the streets to protest. Since then, they have congregated on social media networking sessions, getting an education on the country’s governance and electoral process from influencers and political groups.

Olisaemeka Nwosu, a first-time voter and Lagos-based product manager, participated in the anti-police brutality protests and attended different virtual conversations on the need to vote.

“The Instagram Live series of celebrities like Falz and Mr Macaroni [two popular Nigerian activists] on the need for political participation inspired my decision [to get a PVC and vote],” he told Al Jazeera.

Particularly of note are Obi supporters, who call themselves “Obidient” who have capitalised on the power of social media to entice new believers and create a groundswell of support for their preferred candidate.

They have formed groups on WhatsApp and Facebook, raising funding to pay for logistics on the ground to convince more people to register and vote for Obi.

“The 10 million new registered voters is directly tied to the Obidient Movement,” Joseph Onuorah, a founding member of the WhatsApp group Obidient Movement, claims.

“The messaging was united across all the support groups. To change Nigeria, we need to elect Peter Obi, to achieve that starts with going to get your PVC,” he told Al Jazeera.

Volunteer groups with no political affiliations have been offering taxi people free rides to pick up their voter cars across Lagos and a number of other cities.

To win the Nigerian presidency, a candidate has to garner the highest votes and at least 25 percent in 24 of the 36 states.

Several polls have projected an Obi win in the February 25 vote.

But his critics deride him as a “social media candidate” and call the projections “social media polls”, saying the Labour Party needs a nationwide structure to get a national spread of votes.

His supporters disagree.

“Obi is a breath of fresh air,” said Odinmah, who convinced her sister to get a voter card and is talking to her friends who have theirs, on the need to vote.

At the INEC office in Somolu where she retrieved her voter card, most of the others in the queue were youths, she told Al Jazeera.

“I’m so happy seeing young people go out against all odds to get their PVC and vote right this time,” she told Al Jazeera. “It feels good to be part of a revolution like this.”

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I Have Never Been So Proud of My Fellow Nigerians

By Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Ms. Adichie is a writer.

News Update: On Wednesday, Bola Tinubu was declared the winner of Nigeria’s presidential election.

Imagine standing patiently in line, waiting to vote, and suddenly men with guns arrive on motorcycles and start shooting. Imagine men dashing into your polling unit, violently seizing ballot boxes and taking them away. Imagine other ballot boxes being destroyed . Imagine being beaten to keep you from voting for a particular candidate. Imagine a crowd of people chanting “We must vote! We must vote!” when polling workers failed to arrive as expected. Imagine the police doing very little. All these things happened during the Nigerian presidential elections on Saturday. Through it all, there was a chilling lack of transparency from the Independent National Electoral Commission, or I.N.E.C., which oversees elections.

Nigerian elections have a history of being rigged, of cooked-up numbers and stolen ballot boxes. This time, though, Nigerians were asked to place their faith in a new electronic voting system that would make tampering more difficult. Technology would be the savior: In each polling unit, votes would be counted in the presence of voters and then immediately uploaded to a secure central portal . Failing to upload the results in real time was the most egregious of the many irregularities of this election because it has destroyed the cautious trust with which many approached the process.

The I.N.E.C. blames technical issues for the delay. How, Nigerians wonder, can a well-funded electoral body that had four years to prepare for an important presidential election make such a significant blunder? It is reasonable, then, that many voters have assumed purposeful intent, that election workers were instructed not to upload results so that they could later be secretly manipulated.

I know Nigeria, the country of my birth, intimately. I know the political culture, where the exchange of large amounts of money makes so many people conscience-deficient, where the mainstream media’s instinct is political deference and where the will of the people is often ignored. Nigerians, especially young Nigerians, are determined that this time, their votes will matter. A majority of Nigerians are below the age of 35. They are a bright, innovative and talented generation, a hungry generation, starved of good leadership, who do not merely sit back and complain but who act and push back and want to forge their own futures.

On Saturday, many went out to vote, enthusiastic but cautious, their phone cameras ready to record any irregularities. They waited for election workers who arrived many hours late to polling stations. They braved the harassment and beatings of men paid to create chaos. They went off and bought their own ink for finger-printing when election workers claimed to have run out of it. They provided their own light from their phones as they stood in line in the dark, and according to one recorded case, a voter brought a small generator to a polling place when the voting machine stopped working. They refused to leave even though they had to wait so long that it was almost dawn when they could finally vote. And when it began to rain, they came together and sang beautiful songs. I have never been so proud of my fellow Nigerians. Many were voting for the first time, inspired by one candidate, Peter Obi, who has brought to them that ineffable thing that we humans need to thrive: hope.

Now, as results are being counted, there is growing disillusionment. A sludge of tension is in the air. A simmering rage. Some voters say that the official numbers trickling in do not match the numbers from their polling units, that the results tell a story different from what they witnessed on Saturday. They are convinced of the complicity of those who should be caretakers of the democratic process.

Elections must always be transparent, of course, but for an abysmally low-trust society like Nigeria, a radical transparency is needed for credibility. Elections must be completely transparent and must be widely seen to be completely transparent; sadly, neither seems to apply to Nigeria’s presidential election.

African democracies are criticized, often condescendingly so, in ways that stoke resentment, not because the criticism isn’t valid, but because it isn’t fair. Africa is full of young nation-states, and democracy takes time to establish its roots, and even when it does, the fragility always remains.

I’ve always found it curious that African countries were expected to form functioning democracies right after independence, even though the colonial governments they had only just freed themselves from were dictatorships in everything but name. Nigerians want a functioning democracy, and they are starting on the path to it but might be derailed unless the international community pays attention now.

Nigeria is Africa’s tottering giant, the continent’s most populous country, the most politically and culturally dominant. To pay real attention to Nigeria is to signal that Africa matters, as the United States has always maintained. The Biden administration needs to stand behind the Nigerian people now and make a firm commitment to support election transparency. Besides — my tongue is lodged in my cheek — you don’t want a wave of Nigerian asylum seekers fleeing the unbearable discontent of living under an illegitimate government.

Sometimes democracies are threatened by foreign invasions and sometimes democracies are most at risk from internal forces. All of them need support.

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is a novelist and the author, most recently, of “Notes on Grief.”

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Influence of Social Media on Political Mobilisation: Lessons from 2023 Presidential Election in Nigeria

2023, International Journal of Strategic Research in Education, Technology and Humanities

The Internet has become one of the most important technological developments on the planet. Humanity depends on it for benefits in social, cultural, political, and other realms. In the space of more than a decade, the Internet has Nigeria has witnessed tremendous Internet revolutions affecting the people in diverge ways. Thus, in the Digital Age, the methods by which specific contents are selected and articulated into news have changed. So also are the media by which people receive news. These days, crave for real-time information is on the rise. And to satisfy this thirst, many people turn to online sources and social media sites such as Facebook and WhatsApp to stay up-to-date with the news. Professionals now talk about citizen journalism and electronic republic! Currently, Nigeria is in the news, courtesy of 2023 general elections. This is paper, outcome of survey, set out on a survey on based on as sample of 484 derived from Awka metropolis of Anambra State. The paper submits that these days, crave for real-time information is on the rise. And to satisfy this thirst, many people turn to online sources and social media sites such as Facebook and WhatsApp to stay up-to-date with the news. Given the 2023 election scenario in Nigeria, the paper concludes that new media are potent tools of information dissemination and mass mobilization. Apart from adding to literature, this paper has significance in terms of development and political communication in Nigeria.

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Hadiza Wada

This study is a qualitative survey, a sequel to an earlier paper by the same scholar seeking to understand the influence of social media use on the 2015 general election in Nigeria. While the earlier paper focused on fully supported observations plus theoretical challenges that social media use poses to scholars of mass communication, this paper measures (a) what specific role did social media play in Nigerian youths political awareness and participation in the 2015 general elections; (b) the depth and frequency in percentage terms of social media use among the youths; as well as (c) the impact of social media on Nigerian youths political awareness and participation. The results show significant usage with an overwhelming majority of respondents admitting to visiting social media sites several times a day. It however shows social media use is limited to news and information discussions and opinion formations, rather than relying on it as the major source of credible political news, or information. Table II shows that for an overwhelming majority, the primary source of political information remains radio and television.

SAU JOURNAL OF MANAGEMENT AND SOCIAL SCIENCES

Barigbon Nsereka

Godswill John

This study on Social Media and Political Mobilization basically sought examine how electorates were mobilized through social media for the 2019 Presidential election in Cross River State. The study was guided by five objectives as well as five research questions. The study was anchored on Marshall Mcluhan's Technological Determinism Theory which states that technology shapes how individuals in a society think, feel, act, and how the society operates. The theory further assumes that technology drives development in any given society. Survey methodology was adopted. Accordingly, a sample size of 384 was drawn from the study population of 227,255. The study utilized the closed-ended questionnaire and in-depth interview as instruments of data gathering. The major findings of the study showed that the social media, particularly, particularly Facebook serves as the main channel of political mobilization in modern democratic society. The electorates relied on social media as the main source of information and the basis on which they formed their opinions and voting decision. Adequate mobilization and enlightenment of the people enabled them to participate fully in the political process. Further findings showed that social media had the potential of abuse by desperate actors in the political space. Based on the findings; the researcher recommended among other things that there should be increased use of social media in all the electioneering processes. Social media should also be deployed for other forms of mass mobilization rather than leaving it for political campaigns solely. Government should put in place well-articulated guidelines (regulatory framework) on how political parties should use the online media networks for electioneering campaigns and other political activities to stem the ugly tide of utilization of the platforms for selfish reasons.

Benue Journal of Sociology

DAJO UGBA , Saka Bem

Abstract The primary aim of this paper was to examine the contribution of social media to democratization process in Nigeria’s Fourth Republic. A review of literature indicates that there is lack of consensus among scholars regarding the role of social media as a democratization tool. While other scholars extol social media as critical tool in the democratization process by pointing out its role in mobilizing the people to be involved in the governance of their country and holding the leaders accountable, others believe that the emergence of social media is a threat to democracy. Those who view social media as threat to democracy often cite the problem of hate speech, fake news and manipulative campaigns in the polarization of the society. Nigeria has over the years witnessed a significant increase in the number of people using different social media platforms such as Facebook, WhatsApp, Myspace, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat etc and these social media platforms have been used by different segment of the Nigeria population for political engagement. It was against this background that this paper was designed to assess the contributions of social media in the democratization process in Nigeria. Through the use of secondary sources of data such as articles, newspapers, newsletters, the paper observed that although social media is a new terrain especially in the democratization process in Nigeria with problems such as fake news, hate speech and smear campaigns, it has contributed positively to the democratization process in Nigeria by enhancing political participation, educating, sensitising and mobilising people to participate in the governance of their country. The paper therefore recommended that people must go out to mobilize citizens to participate in the political process as change cannot be effected on social media, social media websites should create more software in the local languages to increase the number of people using social media and the National Orientation Agency, Ministry of Information and civil society organizations should sensitize members of the public on the negative effect of fake news and hate speech in the society.

IOSR Journal of Humanities And Social Science (IOSR-JHSS)

The place of social media to rally political support is no longer in doubt. To advance the conversation and mobilize political supports, social media has become a critical political tool for campaign planners. The 2011 general elections in Nigeria arguably marked a significant milestone in the use of social media for political communication in the country. Motivated by President Barrack Obama's successful use of Facebook to win the United States elections in 2008 as the first black American president, Nigerian politicians are indeed, gradually taking their campaigns to the social networking sites and other online platforms. Within the election period, political aspirants were disposing of all means to gear up their support base, following the realization that electioneering requires more than just handshakes and physical persuasion. This study is anchored on the theoretical frameworks of technological determinism and social judgment theory which suggest that exposure to Political campaigns encourages people to "assimilate" or equate their feelings about related target attitudes. Using electorates in the SouthEast of Nigeria, the paper explores the extent of youth involvement with the social media for electioneering process. The data generated were analyzed using frequency distribution and simple percentage. The findings indicate that the political campaigns through the new media had significant effect on the electorate's decision-making and participation in Nigerian elections. The study therefore recommends the embracing of social media for successive political campaigns that grants the electorate the interactive opportunity with the political candidates.

austin MAHO

Advances in information and communication technology are impacting the way we receive and process information. At the forefront of this development is the increased use of the social media. Social media applications like Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, YouTube and a host of others have not only become an essential feature of people's daily lives it has also influenced the way people receive, process, disseminate and share information. The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of the social media on the 2015 presidential election in Nigeria. A qualitative study design was employed in the research problem. A non-probability sampling procedure was used to draw samples for the study. Data were analyzed through thematic categorization. Emergent themes were delineated and categorised in relation to identifiable variables on social media influences on the 2015 presidential election. The results suggest that the social media has created a platform for more democratic participatory citizenry and contributed to the outcome of the 2015 presidential election in Nigeria. The results of this study are significant for political parties, those seeking political office, media practitioners, social media users, policy-makers and the general public.

International Institute of Academic Research and Development

ERUDE, Shalom Ufuoma

This study is premised on the impact cum relevance of social media on elections in Nigeria, with a special focus on the 2020 gubernatorial election in Edo State, Nigeria. The social media has revolutionized the landscape of political interaction globally, and Nigeria being a key player in the scheme of things, has not been immune to this transformative phenomenon. Owing to her large population cum growing digital connectivity, the social media has emerged as a very powerful tool for disseminating information, informing public opinions, as well as mobilizing citizens during electoral processes. We made use of Max Weber (1964) Theory of Social Action. The social action theory is pertinent to this study as it takes into account both external factors (institutional factors) and internal factors (such as age, gender, religion, ethnicity, education, and perception) in explaining the voting behavior of the electorate. We also made use of both the qualitative and quantitative Method in this study. The survey method was used in the presentation and analyzing of the data. From our findings, it is evident that the role of the social media on elections in Nigeria cannot be over emphasized. Also, the usage of the social media varies among age groups. The younger generation engage these tools (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc) more. Submissively, we recommend that the government should improve on the awareness of digitalization, develop different strategies for the various locations, ages, sex, and etcetera.

Chinedu Arusi

ABSTRACT In recent times, the use of social media for political campaigns has become increasingly popular; this was evident in the just concluded 2015 general elections in Ebonyi State. Scholars says that Social media in politics grew since Barack Obama broke the world record in the history of social media use for political purpose during the 2008 US presidential elections, many nations and politicians across the globe have continued to embrace the platform to mobilize their citizens and candidates towards active participation in the political process. However, the extent to which these social media platforms influence voting behaviors and formed public opinion is unclear. This led the researcher to seek to evaluate and assess the impact of social media on the 2015 Electioneering campaigns in Ebonyi State. The study was anchored on the uses and gratifications theory. The survey research method was used. Findings show that whereas many used the technology to make vital input in the political discourse, others used them to attack opponents, spread false rumours, hate and inciting messages which were believed to have contributed in the violence and tensions witnessed before, during and after the elections in many parts of the state. The work recommends urgent review of the various media laws to address the peculiar technicalities involved in monitoring and moderating the use of different social media platforms. KEYWORDS: Social Media, Political Participation, Nigeria, 2015, General Elections, Lapses, Lessons.

Abba Auwalu

The study will examine the role of social media in creating awareness with special reference to the actual effect of Facebook and Twitter on voter’s and the factors determining the behavior and attitudes that an ordinary voter adopts based on available information gotten on the social media.

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