TRENDS IN ELECTORAL VIOLENCE IN NIGERIA

Olowojolu Olakunle¹, Rasak Bamidele², Ake Modupe¹, Ogundele Oluwaseun¹ & Afolayan Magdalene¹

¹Department of Political Science and International Relations, Landmark University, Omu Aran Nigeria;

 ²Department of Sociology Landmark University, Omu Aran, Nigeria

Email; kunleolowojolu@yahoo.co.uk, rasak.bamidele@lmu.edu.ng, akemodupe@gmail.com, ogundele.oluwaseun@lmu.edu.ng, afolayan.magdalene@lmu.edu.ng

Abstract; Since the Independence era, elections in Nigeria have been characterized by high scale of electoral malpractices, money politics, electoral violence and the use of ethno-religious divide in order to influence the voting patterns of the electorates. Electoral violence is one of the strategies employed by Nigerian politicians during electioneering period. Desperate and power drunk politicians often sponsor unemployed youths and stark illiterates to carry out assaults on their perceived political opponents with a view to manipulating election results to their own advantage. This paper shall make an in-depth analysis of electoral violence in Nigeria with particular focus on the fourth republic.