Vote Trading and Electoral Success in Nigerian Democracy

Authors

  • Ilori Oladapo Mayowa Department of Sociology, Faculty of the Social Sciences, Ekiti State University, Ado Ekiti, Ekiti Sate, Nigeria

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.6000/1929-4409.2021.10.156

Keywords:

Votes, Voters, Selling, Buying, Democracy

Abstract

Democracy is based on the principle of the majority able to choose who leads them in a free and fair context devoid of external interference and political influence. The right to elect a wrong candidate is even part of democracy. The law cannot regulate the legitimate choices that the democratic free will is entitled to make. It chooses what it will. It rejects what it will not choose, or else the democratic free will ceases to be what it fundamentally ought to be, namely “free”. Vote trading is a concept in the Nigerian democratic experience. The issue of vote-trading has been in Nigeria's democracy since its inception but became prominent during the present democratic dispensation. Vote buying has been serving as a clog in the wheel of free choice which is the hallmark of a democracy. Unfortunately, not all people that being influenced by vote-buying know what is going on. Some people indulge in the act of vote-trading unknowing. This study which is mainly based on literature and conceptually looked at the influence of vote trading on voter’s free choice, the factors that influenced both vote buying and selling, and how it can be curbed. Consequently, past literature, like journals, books, and other publications on vote-trading were considered in this study.

References

Bøttkjær, L. Thorn., Jensen, P. Sandholt., & Justesen, M. Kamp. (2016). Buying the Votes of the Poor: How the Electoral System Matters. Paper Presented at the The 10th ECPR General Conference.

Bratton, Michael. (2008). Vote Buying and Violence in Nigerian Election Campaigns. Electoral Studies, 27(4), 621-632. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.electstud.2008.04.013

Casimir, Ani., Omeh, Emma., & Ike, Chinedu. (2013). Electoral Fraud in Nigeria: A Philosophical Evaluation of the Framework of ELECTORAL Violence. Open Journal of Political Science, 3(04), 167. https://doi.org/10.4236/ojps.2013.34023

Damm, A. Phil., & Gorinas, Cedric. (2013). Deal Drugs Once, Deal Drugs Twice: Peer Effects on Recidivism from Prisons. Essays on Marginalization and Integration of Immigrants and Young Criminals—A Labor Economics Perspective. Aarhus University.

Dauda, Muritala., Adamu, Abdullahi., & Ahmodu-Tijani, Lateef. (2019). Vote Trading in Nigeria Politics. Asian People Journal (APJ), 2(2), 42-51.

Dovi, Suzanne. (2006). Political Representation.

Engelen, Bart. (2007). Why Compulsory Voting can Enhance Democracy. Acta politica, 42(1), 23-39. https://doi.org/10.1057/palgrave.ap.5500167

Jensen, P. Sandholt., & Justesen, Mogens. K. (2014). Poverty and Vote Buying: Survey-Based Evidence from Africa. Electoral studies, 33, 220-232. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.electstud.2013.07.020

Onuoha, Freedom. C., & Ojo, Jide. (2018). Practice and Perils of Vote Buying in Nigeria’s Recent Elections. conflict trends, 2018(3), 21-29.

Onwuama, E. Michael. (2019). Impact of Poverty on Political Choices in the 2019 Nigeria General Election.

Sakariyau, Rauf. T., Aliu, F. Lawal., & Adamu, Muhammed. (2015). The Phenomenon of Money Politics and Nigeria’s Democratization: An Exploration of the Fourth Republic. Journal of Social Economics Research, 2(1), 1-9. https://doi.org/10.18488/journal.35/2015.2.1/35.1.1.9

Stober, E. Olusegun. (2016). Stomarch Infrastructure: Lessons for Democracy and Good Governance. Management Dynamics in the Knowledge Economy, 4(3), 449-460.

Stokes, Susan. C., Dunning, Thad., Nazareno, Marcelo., & Brusco, V. (2013). Brokers, Voters, and Clientelism: The Puzzle of Distributive Politics: Cambridge University Press.

Weßels, B. (2015). Political Representation and Electoral Systems. In Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Politics. https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780190228637.013.76

Daily Post Newspaper.

Oxford Advance Dictionary (6th edition).

Punch Newspaper, 14th July, 2018

Punch Newspaper. 26th October, 2018.

Sahara Reporter. 18th July, 2018.

Downloads

Published

2021-09-15

How to Cite

Mayowa, I. O. (2021). Vote Trading and Electoral Success in Nigerian Democracy. International Journal of Criminology and Sociology, 10, 1362–1366. https://doi.org/10.6000/1929-4409.2021.10.156

Issue

Section

Articles