International Journal of Sub-Saharan African Research (IJSSAR)

Background: Globally, increased recognition of the relationship between the media and the government in fostering credible elections and acceptable governance processes have given rise to increasing demands for freer and more credible elections. Today, the increasing demands for transparency and accountability by stakeholders and the need to adhere to global best practices in election administration and operations necessitated this study. Whereas numerous studies exist on the relationship between the media and elections, there remains a gap on how social media particularly promotes credible electoral process during the 2023 general elections in Nigeria.
Objective: This study interrogates the role of social media in promoting credible electoral process in Nigeria, with specific reference to the 2023 general elections with a view to mirroring into 2027.
Method: The work adopted conceptual and analytical approaches which involved the review of extant related literature on issues of elections, social media and governance in Nigeria with a view to garner experiences during the 2023 general elections and mirror into 2027. Results: In the findings, the research found that, social media, governance and elections are compatible, that good governance fosters credible electoral process just as the mass media are reliable partners in ensuring credible and acceptable elections, none can progress without the other. Also, it was found that the roles media played in the past elections in Nigeria were commendable and the combination of social media and conventional media in the 21st century further fostered more credible electoral process.
Conclusion: The study concludes that both social and conventional media have substantial potential to foster credible electoral processes in Nigeria through information dissemination, voter education, and accountability, its actual contribution in the 2023 general elections was undermined by structural, technological, and socio-political constraints and efforts by the ruling parties to manoeuvre opposition political parties which could be averted during the 2027 general elections. Unique contribution: This study no doubt has provided a new deep leap into the exponential increase on the influence of social media in enthroning credible, free, fair, transparent and acceptable electoral process which had over the years eluded Nigeria. It is hoped that, the nation’s electoral umpire, political parties and other key stakeholders will gain fresh insight useful enough in enshrining electoral credibility during electoral process. Key recommendation: Review of the Nigeria’s Electoral Act to include specific guidelines on social media use during elections, such as provisions for admissible digital evidence in courts, mandatory fact-checking protocols, and penalties for deliberate disinformation.