POLITICAL THUGGERY AND ELECTION VIOLENCE IN NIGERIA, A CASE STUDY OF BAYELSA STATE, 2012 - 2019

The aim of this study was to find out political thuggery and election violence in Nigeria using Bayelsa State as a case study. Thuggery is the process of acting violently, especially in commission of a crime. Political thuggery may be seen as the illegitimate means of seeking political power. The specific objectives include the following: to examine the relationship between political thuggery and election violence in Bayelsa State between 2012 to 2019, to understand the causes of political thuggery and election violence in Bayelsa State between 2012 to 2019. The research adopted both primary and secondary data. This research employed the Elite theory (ET) as the theoretical framework for the study. The population of the study constitutes the total number of one thousand (1000) persons living in Bayelsa State who are academically and mentally sound with a sample population of one hundred (100) that was carefully selected. Based on the findings of the study, the following summary and conclusion were made, Environments of economic hardship and poverty are responsible for youth thuggery activities. The causes of political violence in Bayelsa State include: Corruption, Unemployment, Lack of adequate security, Lack of democratic culture, Failure of the justice system.