Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and The Conduct of 2023 Presidential and National Assembly Elections in Nigeria: A Paradigm Shift

Abstract:

It is an established fact that Nigeria’s electoral process has always been marred with irregularities over the years. The 2023 Presidential and National Assembly elections are a paradigm shift in the history of electioneering in the country. Though some challenges were encountered in the conduct of the elections, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was given a pass mark by many local and international observers and thus made the general election a watershed. This makes it imperative in this paper to examine the conduct of the 2023 Presidential and National Assembly elections in Nigeria. The paper infers that if the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) can continue to discharge its functions out of political influence and move away from the status quo where a political party dominates the constitution of drivers of INEC, there is every tendency that there will be continuous better conduct of election in the future. The paper taps various means of getting relevant materials to put this study together for onward academic utilisation and to reshape the conduct of Nigeria’s subsequent general elections like the maintenance of established punishment for electoral offenders, strengthened voter education, and establishment of training institutes for prospective politicians.