ELECTORAL VIOLENCE AND DEMOCRACY IN OYO STATE. A CASE STUDY OF AJIMOBI REGIME AND SEYI MAKINDE REGIME (2015 - 2019) & (2019-2024)

The study researched on the topic: electoral violence and democracy in Oyo State. a case study of Ajimobi regime and Seyi Makinde regime (2015 – 2019) & (2019 – 2024) It has been observed that elections in Nigeria are always faced with different forms of violence. Violence around elections increasingly captures the attention of donors and practitioners, who invest growing resources into enhancing the safety and security of democratic governance around the world. During an election cycle the possibility of violence increases as the stakes of political contestation heighten and when outcomes between candidates and incumbents are viewed in a zero-sum manner. This is particularly true where both the ruling party and its opposition view elections as a zero-sum game. Electoral violence is rarely mono causal; a confluence of factors enables violence before, during or after an election. The primary data for this study was questionnaire. The questionnaire is designed in five Likert scale Questionnaire was administered on participants which comprised of people in Oyo state. The study found that electoral violence has a negative impact on democratic governance and electoral credibility in Ogun State, Nigeria. The study concludes that electoral violence has remained a sour taste in Nigeria’s bid for democratic governance in Nigeria. The study also concludes that electoral violence discourages election of credible leaders and people’s participation in the electoral process thereby militating against electoral credibility in Nigeria.