Published 2024-05-16
Keywords
- Electoral Violence, Insecurity, Democracy, Democratic Sustenance, Nigeria.
Abstract
There were high aspirations for an improved and more flourishing Nigeria once the country returned to civil government in 1999. These expectations stem from the belief that Nigeria's democracy will strengthen as a result of increased protections for citizens' lives and possessions, as well as greater freedom, equality, and liberty. Unfortunately, political and electoral violence in Nigeria have become obstacles to democratic sustainability, making this hope seem more like a phantom than a reality. Due to the country's previous exceptional degree of insecurity, most of which has culminated from political volatility during electioneering, this menace keeps getting worse and pose hazards to Nigerian democracy. Therefore, the purpose of this research is to explore how election violence has impacted Nigeria's progress and maintenance of a stable democracy. The study's thesis is grounded in frustration aggression theory, and it makes use of secondary data collected from thematically examined textbook, journal/article, newspaper/magazine, and internet sources. The study establishes that democracy in Nigeria is in jeopardy due to the pervasiveness, severity, and regularity of electoral violence and rigging. It is argued that the consolidation of democracy in Nigeria will be slowed until the causes of ongoing electoral violence are addressed.