ELECTION MANAGEMENT BODIES AND ELECTIONS IN NIGERIA

2017

The paper interrogates the challenges of conducting credible elections in Nigeria’s current democratic dispensation. It specifically beams its searchlight on the role of the Election Management Body (EMB), namely the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in the conduct of elections. Whilst acknowledging that the conduct of elections since 1999 has been regular and common, heralding democratic progress and optimism, these elections however, are fraught with irregularities and defects that not only undermine the entire democratic process more generally, but specifically also impinge on the capacity of the EMB to conduct credible elections. This has consequently necessitated the requirement for and implementation of electoral reforms, leading to improvements in the conduct of elections and political power alternation. The paper concludes by highlighting the fact that the effectiveness of the EMB and consolidation of democracy in Nigeria depend to a considerable extent on the...

For the past twenty-three years, Nigeria has enjoyed an uninterrupted period of democracy. Although nascent, this democracy has survived 23 years of uninterrupted. This is attributed to the quality of administration of election in the country. Though election in the country has faced and is facing some challenges such as violence, and other misconducts, this paper seeks to establish that the improving nature of election administration coupled with various electoral administrative innovations are instrumental to the sustenance of democracy to the present stage and how it can be further sustained in the Nigerian polity by suggesting improvement in election administration in Nigeria and its usage as a tool for democratic development. The study is built upon the institutional legitimacy theory and asserts that the electoral body (INEC) which is responsible for the administration of election in the country must upscale her operational procedures to meet up with the prevailing demands on election administration in the country in line with the international best practices.

2021

Since the arrival of new democratic train in West Africa, elections have been characterized with naked violence and irregularities which have negatively manifested in economic underdevelopment and political instability. To this end, understanding the dominant nature and character of the electoral management bodies of Nigeria and Ghana to identify a body that is substantially functioning well is central to this paper. This study found a more stronger INEC in terms of electoral management comparing the previous elections with 2015 general elections, yet issues such as non-permanent position of her experienced principal officers, nature of funding, ineffective working relation with other stakeholders are still challenges. This paper discovered that a substantial level of autonomy, permanency in membership of Ghanaian Electoral Commission (EC), proper funding and a doctrine of Inter Party Advisory Committee significantly contributed to its electoral success; by extension democratic cons...

Journal of Reviews on Global Economics, 2019

Nigeria is a country in transition. Since election constitutes a vital ingredient of every participatory democracy, the electoral system therefore is very vital in a country still under transition. Democracy, often, is based on its interface with development. Thus, if democracy is practiced in a manner that accommodates majority of the populace, it has the capacity to jump start human development. In Nigeria, however, the system of democracy has been intercepted by illegitimate regimes over the years, and thereby undermining national development. The relationship between the democracy and development engendered debates over the years among scholars and policy makers. This paper therefore postulates that the electoral institution in Nigeria could be blamed for ushering illegitimate governments, owning to their failure to conduct free and fair elections. The paper concludes that a policy should be formulated to strengthen the electoral body, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to make it truly independent in carrying out the mandate of the people

Ghana and Nigeria are two countries in the West African sub-region that share significant historical similarities like British colonialism, nationalism, economic crisis, prolonged military rule, multi-party democracy and are in their fourth republics. With the global democratization process, Ghana and Nigeria successfully made the transition to civil rule in 1992 and 1999 respectively and are rated differently on the democratization scale. While the former is rated high, the latter is rated low in comparative ranking within the same period of democratization. This paper set out to assess the effectiveness of electoral administration bodies in the conduct of credible and acceptable elections in Nigeria and Ghana and to suggest possible ways of improving election administration in line with international best practices. With intense reliance on descriptive analysis, the paper noted that whereas Ghana has made impressive progress in the democratization process in terms of effective adm...

The 2023 Presidential and Governorship elections in Nigeria marked a pivotal moment in the nation's democratic history, characterized by their significance in shaping the political landscape. This study employs secondary research methods to conduct a comparative analysis of the election management processes of both the presidential and governorship elections in Rivers State Nigeria. By utilizing a comprehensive review of scholarly articles, official reports, media sources, and relevant documents, this research aims to shed light on the similarities and differences in election management strategies, challenges faced, and their implications for Nigerian democracy. Drawing from established frameworks in electoral management, the study evaluates key aspects such as voter registration, campaign dynamics, security arrangements, electoral logistics, and the role of electoral institutions. The research explores how the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) navigated the intricacies of managing concurrent elections at both levels, focusing on the measures taken to ensure inclusivity, transparency, and credibility. It also examines the impact of technological advancements on the electoral process, including the use of biometric voter identification systems and electronic transmission of results. Furthermore, the study delves into the challenges encountered during the elections, including voter suppression, electoral violence, allegations of fraud, and logistical bottlenecks. By analyzing these challenges within the context of both elections, the research aims to provide insights into the unique obstacles faced at different levels of the political hierarchy and the varying responses of electoral management bodies. The findings of this study have broader implications for the consolidation of democracy in Nigeria. By identifying best practices and lessons learned from the 2023 elections, the research contributes to the body of knowledge on election management strategies in a complex political environment. It also offers recommendations for improving future electoral processes, such as enhancing security arrangements, refining voter education initiatives, and leveraging technology to address logistical challenge.

Democracy and Security, 2019

Since the return of Nigeria to civil democracy in 1999, elections and their administration by the electoral body, like they were in the previous defunct republics, have been rather problematic to the effect that many observers have even doubted whether electoral democracy could fit in into the country's social milieu. However, in recent times, following the controversial and widely condemned elections of 2003 and 2007, a series of electoral reforms have been initiated to improve the quality of elections in the country. This article, adopting descriptive and historical methodology, examines how the series of reforms initiated by the Electoral Management Body (EMB), the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) before the 2015 general elections impinged on the overall outcome of the exercises. The article notes that there were tremendous improvements in the administration of the 2015 General elections by INEC. It argues that the improved electoral administration of the 2015 General elections may be connected with the reforms initiated by the elections body prior to the 2015 elections. It concludes that, even though, INEC may have fared better in comparison with how it handled similar endeavors in the past, yet more works still need to be done in order to have even better outcomes in the 2019 round of elections.

2019

Nigeria continued to dominate both national and international political discourse as a model of democracy for the rest of Sub-Saharan Africa immediately after the successful conduct and the outcome of the 2015 general elections that saw for the first time peaceful conduct of elections and transition from one civilian administration to the other and which brought the opposition party to power without violence or bloodshed. However, following the conclusion and outcome of the 2019 general elections, Nigeria has become a surprise to political scholars and commentators who find it difficult to unravel how she failed to consolidate the gains of the 2015 general elections so as to emerge stronger as a democratic nation. This study adopts the governance approach, and explores the need to rebrand the processes of conducting elections in Nigeria in order to achieve enhanced democratic governance and also for a healthy synergy between the electorates, the political class, political parties an...

Kuwait Chapter of Arabian Journal of Business and Management Review, 2013

Election management has been a critical issue in Nigeria's political history since independence, leading to the abortion of several attempts at democratic governance before 1999. Various abuses of the electoral process had been recorded in the seven general elections held before the 2011 elections. The paper evaluates the efficiency of the election management body, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in terms of preparations for the election, ability of INEC to ensure compliance to electoral laws by political parties and actors, and the level of synergy between INEC, security agencies and other institutions. The paper adopted system theory and decision making approach as theoretical constructs. The two approaches were used as platform for a content analysis of the secondary data comprising of relevant published books, scholarly journal articles, newspaper articles, conference and institutional papers, as well as materials downloaded from the internet. The paper argues that when compared with the past elections, the 2011 elections were relatively credible, free and fair. However, several shortcomings were identified including, inefficiency in the preparation for elections on the part of INEC, undemocratic imposition of candidates by all the leading political parties, and various security lapses during and after the elections. The paper concludes that INEC leadership must tackle the identified lapses, including carrying out a complete reorganization of the commission to make it more efficient, ensure strict adherence to the electoral law by all political parties and put in place security measures that deter threats.

Tamaddun

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is the Electoral Management Body (EMB) established in Nigeria to deliver free, fair, and credible elections through a transparent and peaceful process. However, the origin of violence perpetrated during elections with wanton destruction of public and private property, including loss of lives all over the country, calls for an examination of the role of INEC in this regard. This study used historical method analyses to examine the role of INEC. The study found out that though INEC has, to a large extent, performed its role and also helped to deepen democracy in Nigeria since its establishment in 1998. Further studies also found that INEC’s poor organisational abilities, lack of essential transparency, widespread procedural irregularities, substantial evidence of fraud, widespread voter disenfranchisement at different stages of the process, etc., have been responsible for the numerous incidences of conflict in the country during ele...