Elections in nigeria are forms of choosing representatives to the nigerian federal government and the various states in the fourth republic nigeria. Elections were marred presidential elections in nigeria as a result of change with the culture of rigging, malpractices, intimidation of political behaviour of the electorates and voting of both voters and opposition, use of violence and pattern from religious affiliation, ethnicity, political thuggery most especially by the ruling party. The conduct of the independent national electoral commission. Nigeria s election below the minimum democracy standard.
This underscores the onerous responsibility for conducting free and fair elections in nigeria. National a ssembly elections federal legislature, presidential elections federal executive, and gubernatorial and state assembly elections state executive and legislature respectively. While nigeria deserves commendation for the democratic sustenance, particularly the conduct of periodic elections since 1999, it is apposite to note that each of the successive elections has had its peculiar challenges. This definition sounds all too familiar with the political scene in present day nigeria. In all, credible observers ascribe over twelve thousand deaths since 1999 to ethnic, religious, and regional conflict in. Abstractthe nigerian state is not alien to electoral violence which can be traced as far back as. The data for this paper were generated from a crosssectional survey conducted from june to july, 2009.
Systematic african studies have revealed that electoral violence tends to have a negative impact driving africans away from participating in elections. History of general elections in nigeria from 1999 till date. The independent national electoral commission inec was established by the 1999 constitution of the federal republic of nigeria to among other things organize elections into various political offices in. These are listed below and briefly, discussed afterward. Although three common types of electoral systems can be identified, namely. This is as opposed to a secret ballot, where a voters choices are confidential. What this means is that the way she conducts her elections serves as an example to other african democracies.
Ethnicity and political behaviour of nigerians in the 2015. Voters, tired of the brigandage of the military came out enmasse determined to cast their vote. Parliamentary elections in nigeria in order to understand how different the outcome region political total percentage no. It is bordered by niger and chad to the north, cameroon to the east, and benin to the west. At this stage, election was restricted to the municipalities lagos and calabar with grossly unacceptable elitist prerequite for franchise which among other things required the electorates to be resident in lagos and calabar, have. It is therefore time to publish a revised edition, with the most relevant sections. It is therefore time to publish a revised edition, with the most relevant sections updated and expanded, current countrylevel data and. In september, the first election took place in lagos and calabar following the introduction of the sir hugh clifford constitution in 1922.
Among the changes are steps taken to guarantee the independence of the independent national elections commission inec and to reorganize election tribunals and their powers. This type of voting is used for people who live away from their state or country and for some reasons cannot be present to vote on the day of the election. Pdf the electoral process and democratic consolidation. Elections under colonial rule before independence in 1960, nigeria, which existed as an amalgamation of the northern and southern protectorates since 1914, had already witnessed three different elections.
In view of this, the thrust of this paper is a reflection on the tides of electoral violence and the attendant precipitating factors that make free and fair election pretty difficult in nigeria. While olusegun obasanjo contested under the umbrella of the. Types of elections in nigeria there are various stages for election in nigeria. Inec in the 2015 general elections in ibadan southeast local government. In the already pluralized society of nigeria it is not an exception. The independent national electoral commission inec was established by the 1999 constitution of the federal republic of nigeria to among other things organize elections into various political offices in the country.
Many practices may have elements of direct democracy. Pdf political behaviour and voting pattern in nigeria. While competitive elections once unheard of in many african countries have become more frequent, they pose a heightened threat of electoral violence, par. Causes of electoral violence in africa written by ngah. Nigeria introduction in march and april 2015 nigeria held national and state level elections, including for the presidency.
Electoral malpractice and the challenges of democratic. The violence and riots that followed, gave the western region the name wild wild west. There are majorly four different types of the election in nigeria. Election riggings in nigeria were evident in 19641965, 1979, 1983,1993,1999,2003 and 2007 general elections. Nigeria is so giant that people say that as nigeria goes, so goes africa. It must be noted however, that the coming of the colonialists did not. There are 73 presidential candidates and 1,008 people seeking to be state governors.
The concept elections vary in accordance with the type of political systems. It was june 12 that revealed that nigerians have the potentials to be. The elections had initially been scheduled for 16 february, but the electoral commission postponed the vote by a week at 03. Cost of politics in nigeria westminster foundation for.
The electoral system is part of our colonial legacy in nigeria. Types of election in nigeria and electoral system nb. Victory in a primary usually results in a candidate being nominated or endorsed by a political party for the general election. Because direct democracya form of government in which political decisions are made directly by the entire body of qualified citizensis impractical in most modern societies, democratic government must be conducted through representatives. The 2019 presidential election is one of the most keenly and closely contested in the history of nigerian presidential elections since the colonial and postindependence period. Election in nigeria is an important part of any democratic process that enables the citizenry determine fairly and freely who should lead them at every level of government periodically and take decisions that would determine their. The system minimizes incidences of election rigging that comes with the secret ballot system as well as other electoral. Foundation for election systems ifes, and international idea. In the 2019 elections, however, civil society observers all across nigeria saw a collation process that was chaotic, vulnerable to manipulation and, in some locations, violently disrupted and unnecessarily opaque. Mar 25, 2019 section 52 of the electoral act as amended in 2015 to the effect that inec has been empowered to use any device to adopt any measure to conduct a credible election in nigeria and that provision.
At this critical juncture in the countrys history, the nigerian government and other public. However, for elections to be termed democratic, it must be free and fair. Elections, violence and conflict prevention ace electoral. In preparation for the 2011 elections, nigeria has made various changes to laws governing elections, mainly the electoral act and the constitution. A purposive sample of 455 individuals was selected from three states, anambra, plateau. The 1964, federal elections and 1965 western region elections were marred by the widespread electoral malpractices. Electoral violence and 2015 general elections in nigeria. Nigeria had various unique and different ways of appointing their leaders. Ebonyi state independent electoral commission ebsiec, abakaliki, ebonyi state, nigeria abstract education, being a process of teaching and learning is evaluated through examination at the end of the learning period.
Conducting free and fair elections in nigeria has been a very big problem since the country became independent. Nigeria conducts political elections every four years. General elections were held in nigeria on 23 february 2019 to elect the president, vice president, house of representatives and the senate. According to nohlen 1996, the fact that elections are held in democratic authoritarian and totalitarian political systems leads to the following conclusions. The system of recruiting political leaders through elections was alien to the various kingdoms and societies in nigeria. As nigeria navigates the 2011 election season, few are hopeful that this ugly political history will not be repeated. Nigeria s democracy is the most populous democracy in africa with population of about 150 million. The use of the modified open secretballot system in its true form is the solution to election rigging, especially in nigeria. A presidential election was held in nigeria on 16 april 2011, postponed from 9 april 2011. The independent national elections commission inec is the commission set up by the constitution to conduct, supervise elections in nigeria for the office of the. Attempts are made through its composition to include all the authorities involved in the electoral process.
Not doing enough rigorous political analyses by relating election crisis to state formation. By extension, the electoral act 2010 stipulates the ceiling of expenses by candidates and political parties for specific elective positions. From the 1950s, elections in nigeria approximated a war wage to determine who get. The nigerian electoral system electoral systems and processes. A general election is an election held to choose among candidates nominated in a primary or by. The lower course of the niger river flows south through the western part of the country into the gulf of guinea.
Sep 07, 2018 types of election in nigeria and electoral system nb. The process should involve accreditation of voters in the respective polling stations, for a period of three hours, starting from 8. These practices are forms of direct democracy, expressing the will of a large population. Nigeria electoral trends 8 the 2019 general election is by far the largest in nigeria s political history. Abstract the nigerian state is not alien to electoral violence which can be traced as far back as the pre independence elections. Elections are conducted periodically into various political offices across the 36 states and the. Nigeria gained independence from the british imperialist in 1960. Nigeria is a federation of thirtysix states and conducts elections periodically for federal as well as state political offices. Through elections, the electorates are provided with. Types of election in nigeria and electoral system information. A primary election is a nominating election in which the field of candidates that will run in the general election is chosen. Election rigging is the act of dishonestly organizing an election to get a particular result. Historical background to electoral violence in nigeria in the words of alanamu 2005, the history of violence in nigeria politics dates back to colonial era. Nigeria s crisis of legitimacy can only be overcome by a strong commitment to political reform and concrete efforts to strengthen the countrys democratic institutions.
Competitive elections democratic systems semi competitive elections authoritarian systems non competitive elections totalitarian systems. From the 1950s, elections in nigeria approximated a war wage to determine who get what, when and how oyediran 1997. The nigerian electoral system electoral systems and. In nigeria, open ballot system, also known as option a4, is a voting method in which voters vote openly by queuing or otherwise, indicating the candidate of their choice. Like many other new democracies, nigerias democratization has been embedded with electoral malpractices. Lg elections in nigeria between 1999 and 2008 in three states of nigeria. Breaking the cycle of electoral violence in nigeria united states. Electoral commission inec of nigeria, political parties, the media and. An analysis of the 2015 nigerian presidential election. The house of representatives has 360 members which are elected for a fouryear term in singleseat constituencies and there are 109 members in the senate members elected as senate members. Ordinarily, electoral process is expected to contribute towards democratic consolidation in any given society. Contestants in nigeria can go to any length to rig and win elections even if it means to break the states.
Even though the 2007 general election is generally considered to be the worst in nigeria s recent history. The nigeria decides programme on nta during the 2007 elections graphically illustrates a contemporaneous information giving role played by the media to make the electorate know the profiles of their potential leaders from the interviews and fact files about aspiring politicians. Abstract ethnicity is a dominant force which continues to play an important role in determining the political behaviour of nations of the world. Nigeria, onethird larger than texas in area and the most populous country in africa, is located on the gulf of guinea in west africa. Pdf the electoral process and democratic consolidation in. Elections are conducted periodically into various political offices across the 36 states and the federal capital territory.
The effect of electoral violence on electoral participation in africa. Election rigging and the problems of electoral act in nigeria. The april elections and democratic consolidation in nigeria 42 appendix a. Lack of probity, accountability, transparency and trust on the part of government has been responsible for the poor turnouts in elections. Election in nigeria is an important part of any democratic process that enables the citizenry determine fairly and freely who should lead them at every level of government periodically and take decisions that would determine their economic, political and. In switzerland, many important political decisions on issues, including public health, energy, and employment, are subject to a vote by the country s citizens. Nigeria adopted a new legal framework for the 2011 elections following amendments to the electoral act and constitution in late 2010 and early 2011. However, the collins dictionary defined election rigging as the act of dishonestly organizing an election to get a particular desired result through fraud and interference with the election process. Between 1999 and 2007, election riggings have accompanied with bloodshed a nd this ha. Since independence, nigeria has been desirous of a credible voting system because of the irregularities that trailed previous elections. The accredited voters should gather after the accreditation period and.
The elections were not entirely peaceful, with an estimated 160 people killed in election related violence. The definition of elections given above thus describes democratic elections, whether in a proportional, majority or mixed system. In the past few years she has participated in election missions in more than a dozen countries, including afghanistan, the democratic republic of the congo, georgia, liberia, lebanon, nigeria, sierra leone and yemen. Electoral violence in nigeria council on foreign relations. It means, elections are competitive and non competitive, depending on the degree of freedom of choice, we can therefore make the following classifications. Elections make a fundamental contribution to democratic governance.
The problem of election crisis in nigeria therefore, becomes an interesting and pertinent exercise for a rigorous political analysis precisely because of the way it has come to be associated with general elections since independence. Nigeria s election history augurs poorly for the security of the 2019 contests. Presidential and gubernatorial elections, 19 april 2003. Types of election systems in nigeria and other countries legit.
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