The Perception of Electoral Violence and Democratization in Ibadan, Oyo State Southwest Nigeria

The importance that is currently attached to elections around the world readily suggests that it's successful conduct everywhere is critical to the advancement of democracy and to the maintenance of both national as well as global peace and security. Despite attempts to entrench peacefully electoral democracy in Nigeria, democratization has been marred by upsurge of electoral violence. The effects of electoral violence transcend the political arena to socioeconomic development and security. This study seeks to understand the factors underpinning electoral violence in Nigeria. The article undertakes a theoretical excursion to explain events of electoral violence within democratization processes and highlights the characteristics of electoral violence and the determinants of its occurrence. It further seeks to understand those factors enabling electoral violence in Nigeria as it attempts to conceptualize and contextualize the phenomenon of violence in Nigerian democratization processes. Before concluding, the article proffers the ways forward.