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INFLUENCE OF SOCIAL MEDIA POLITICAL CAMPAIGN ON THE CHOICE OF

CANDIDATES AMONG THE UNDERGRADUATES OF UNIVERSITY OF BENIN
IN THE 2023 GENERAL ELECTION

Article · August 2023

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 INFLUENCE OF SOCIAL MEDIA POLITICAL CAMPAIGN ON THE
CHOICE OF CANDIDATES AMONG THE UNDERGRADUATES OF
UNIVERSITY OF BENIN IN THE 2023 GENERAL ELECTION

BY

NWEKE, IFEOMA JULIET

ART1801773

A PROJECT WORK SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE

REQUIREMENTS FOR THE AWARD OF BACHELOR OF ARTS (B.A)
DEGREE IN MASS COMMUNICATION, FACULTY OF ARTS, UNIVERSITY
OF BENIN, EDO STATE.

AUGUST, 2023

i
 DECLARATION

This work is based on a research undertaken by me in the Department of Mass

Communication, Faculty of Arts, University of Benin, under the supervision of Prof.

Ezekiel Asemah

All ideas presented in this work are products of my personal research and

where the views of others have been used, they are duly acknowledged.

________________________________
NWEKE, IFEOMA JULIET
ART1801773

ii
 CERTIFICATION

This is to certify that this research work was carried out by NWEKE IFEOMA

JULIET with Mat No: ART1801773 in the Department of Mass Communication,

Faculty of Arts, University of Benin, Edo State.

________________________ __________________
Prof. Ezekiel S. Asemah DATE
Project Supervisor

________________________ _________________
Dr. Daniel O. Ekhareafo DATE
Head of Department

iii
 DEDICATION

This research work is dedicated to God, who has been there for me. And to my

dear parents and siblings for their support and contribution.

iv
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

My profound gratitude goes to God for his guidance and tremendous works all

through my undergraduate days. To my ever supportive supervisor, Prof. Ezekiel. S

Asemah, who have worked so hard to make this project a success. I also want to thank

him for his unfailing guidance.

I am also grateful to God for my parents, Mr. and Mrs. Stephen Nweke, my

friends Okafor Promise, Isemede Ohikhena Ahonsi, Adiele Chioma, Umem Patience,

Ashar, Bawo, Irene, Jane, Louisa and my wonderful siblings for making my stay in

school worthwhile.

Finally, I want to appreciate the Head of Department, Dr. Daniel Ekhareafo; lecturers

Dr. Ene Obaje, Prof. Uchenunu, Dr.Nonso Nnabuife, Mr. Sunday Ekerikevwe, Dr

Collins Kediehior for their academic impacts in my life. May God bless them all

mightily in Jesus name, Amen.

v
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Title page - - - - - - - - - i
Declaration - - - - - - - - - ii
Certification - - - - - - - - - iii
Dedication - - - - - - - - - iv
Acknowledgements - - - - - - - - v
Table of Contents - - - - - - - - vi
List of Tables - - - - - - - - - viii
Abstract - - - - - - - - - ix
CHAPTER ONE: Introduction
1.1 Background of the Study - - - - - - 1
1.2 Statement of Problem - - - - - - - 4
1.3 Objectives of Study - - - - - - - 5
1.4 Research Questions - - - - - - - 6
1.5 Scope of the Study - - - - - - - 6
1.6 Significance of the Study - - - - - - 7
1.7 Definition of Terms - - - - - - - 8
CHAPTER TWO: Review of Related Literature
2.1 Historical Review of Social Media - - - - - 9
2.1.1 Historical Review of Social Media - - - - - 9
2.2 Conceptual Review - - - - - - - 13
2.2.1 Conceptual Review of Social media - - - - - 13
2.2.2 Conceptual Review of Political Campaign - - - - 15
2.2.3 Conceptual Review of Election - - - - - 16
2.2.4 Conceptual Review of Electioneering - - - - 18
2.2.5 Conceptual Review of Political Participation - - - 19
23 Opinion Review - - - - - - - 22
2.3 1 Social media and politics - - - - - - 22
2 3 2 The role of social media in mobilization for electoral participation - 28
2.3 3 The challenges in the use of social media as political platform in Nigeria 33

vi
2.4 Empirical Review - - - - - - - 36
2.5 Theoretical Framework - - - - - - 38
2.5. 1 Media Equation theory - - - - - - 39
2.5 2 Vale's Persuasion Theory - - - - - - 40
2.6 Summary - - - - - - - - - 41
CHAPTER THREE: Methodology
3.1 Research Design - - - - - - - 42
3.2 Population of the Study - - - - - - 43
3.3 Sample Size - - - - - - - - 43
3.4 Sampling Technique - - - - - - - 44
3.5 Instrument of Data Collection - - - - - 45
3.6 Validity of the Instrument - - - - - - 46
3.7 Reliability of the Instrument - - - - - - 46
3.8 Method of Data Collection - - - - - - 46
3.9 Method of Data Analysis - - - - - - 47
CHAPTER FOUR: Data Presentation and Analysis
4.1 Data Presentation - - - - - - - 48
4.2 Discussion of Findings - - - - - - 58
CHAPTER FIVE: Summary, Conclusion and Recommendations
5.1 Summary - - - - - - - - 63
5.2 Conclusion - - - - - - - - 64
5.3 Recommendations - - - - - - 65
5.4 Limitations of the Study - - - - - - 66

References - - - - - - - - 67
Appendix - - - - - - - - 71

vii
 LIST OF TABLES

Table 1: Distribution of Respondents by Gender 48

Table 2: Distribution of Respondents by Age 48
Table 3: Distribution of Respondents by Religion 49
Table 4: Distribution of Respondents by Faculty 49
Table 5: Distribution of Respondents by Department 50
Table 6: Level of Exposure to Political campaigns 50
Table 7: Extent of exposure to political campaigns on social media 51
Table 8: Social Media Political campaigns are carried out with the aid of internet
accessible devices 51

Table 9: Social Media Political campaigns influence the electorate‟s choice of

political candidates 52

Table 10: Regularity of accessing Social Media for Political campaigns during
Elections 52
Table 11: Level of satisfaction with Social Media usage for Political campaigns 53
Table 12: What Social Media Platforms do you access political campaigns? 53
Table 13: How do you perceive the use of Social Media for Political campaign? 54
Table 14: Social Media Political campaign can be a determinant factor for your
participation in the 2023 election 55
Table 15: Electorate comment and participate in Political discourses on Social
Media 55
Table 16: Social Media Political campaign is credible enough to influence your
choice of candidate 56

Table 17: Social Media influenced your choice of candidate 56

Table 18: Electorate‟s participation in Political campaigns is driven to market

their choice of candidate in the 2023 elections 57

Table 19: Social Media is credible in encouraging youth‟s political participation 57

viii
 ABSTRACT

The Crux of this study was to evaluate the Influence of Social Media Political
campaign on the choice of candidate among the undergraduate student of The
University of Benin in the 2023 General Election. The study was anchored on the
Media equation theory and the Vale's Persuasion theory. The survey research method.
Thus, 398 copies of the questionnaire were administered to a sample of 398
undergraduate students of the University of Benin, Benin City. The study revealed
that majority of audience are expose to social media as a political tool and as such, has
influenced their choice of candidates. Many of the respondents commend media
projections because they perceived it to be an irreplaceable tool in Political activities
in Nigeria and the entire work. They all are satisfy with the usage of social media in
electioneering and political campaigns.

ix
 CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background to the Study

In the midst of the digital age, political campaigns are relying heavily on

online communication platforms to gain support in campaigning. Online campaigning

can be just as hurtful as it is helpful, but social media in particular, has the capacity to

dampen the scope of politics (Egbulefu & Nwaoboli, 2023). According to Pătruț

(2014, p13), social media can mobilize riot-like behavior, as the discussion of politics,

including controversial topics and conversation, are easily accessible with the

utilization of online communication. With this easy access to political discussion,

social media changes voters‟ perceptions of one another, as well as candidates.

Edegoh & Asemah (2014, p45), posit that, asides media being employed in

national campaigns like HIV/AIDS, drug abuse, traffic codes and population census,

the media are also used for campaigns during elections. For example, during the 2011

presidential elections in Nigeria, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), used the media a

great deal for campaign. The essence of using the media for campaign is that, it is

believed that mass media are persuasive in nature; they can be used to convince the

audience to accept a particular idea, whether from the government or individuals.

Explaining the relevance of the media in our contemporary society, Asemah

(2020) asserts that the media of mass communication are and will continue to be some

of the essential social forces in promoting national development and world

1
mindedness. An American Philosopher and one of the most clamorous of his time

once said “I know that all is well if I switch off my radio and television at bedtime and

wake up the following morning with the early morning news. But I know that all is not

well, if at bed-time, I switch off my radio and television and switch on the following

morning without hearing anything from either my radio or television or I cannot even

see the newspaper or magazine at the newsstand. I will continue to be worried and ask

myself if the world is not troubled with the absence of the mass media”. This assertion

clearly captures the relevance of the media in every society.

According to Ayankoya, Calitz and Cullen, (2015, p83), the social media

concept involves the use of internet based applications and services for

communication, collaboration, creation and exchange of contents by individuals and

groups. The main focus of social media is the communication that takes place, how the

communication takes place and the relationships that develop based on these

communications. Social media allows individuals and groups to develop, maintain and

stay connected to a network of other individuals and people with common interests

(Ayankoya, 2015, p17).

Social media has become a formidable tool for social interaction and political

electioneering today (Arijeniwa & Nwaoboli, 2023). It has continued to acclaim global

relevance politically. It has made political participation easily, and that political

interaction has become cost-effective compared to traditional media like television,

radio or newspapers. It has greater advantages over conventional methods in

2
organizing political rallies, campaigns and vote lobbying (Arijeniwa & Nwaoboli,

2023). This has made social media a new field of academic research for most students,

of which mass communication students are more concerned on studying its impact on

electioneering processes.

However, the 2011 general elections were considered the first of its kind in

terms of the roles played by social media and the manner at which it influenced the

outcomes of the elections. The recent 2015 general elections that produced

Muhammadu Buhari as president of Nigeria has been commended locally and

internationally as the most historic transfer of power in world`s most populous black

nation with social media playing greater role (The Daily Times, 2015). Although

Social media may have its own flaws but its power of expediency enables citizens`

political participation possibly easier. It is used in encouraging and appealing to

people through their various social media platforms to go out and register, support

candidates and eventually vote on elections day.

This makes social media a formidable platform where all electoral stakeholders

showcase their political skills using new methods facilitated by internet services.

Social media due to its participatory, interactive and cost-effective nature has no doubt

became important instrument for electioneering such as voter‟s registration, voters

card collection, parties activities, election campaigns, voting on the day of election as

well as other related activities.

3
 Every political party in Nigeria is harnessing the social media to campaign and

advance plans, messages and manifestoes to supporters including advertising,

mobilizing and organizing in all the states of the federation and even fundraising

(Nwaoboli, 2023b). Facebook, YouTube and especially Twitter are being used to let

voters know how each party or particular candidate feel about important national

issues ranging from security to power. Hence, social media have become even more

powerful for campaigns for the 2023 elections than how it was utilized during the

2011, 2015, and 2019 general elections (Nwaoboli & Ajibulu, 2023). It has become

just enough to influence voters decisions and choices as few voters who are not sure of

whom to vote for began to change their minds and conscience on voting a particular

party or candidate based on certain information or idea they got online about the party

or candidate.

According to Edegoh & Asemah, (2014, p45), a media campaign is also seen

as the universe of measures in order to fulfill a specific objective. It is against this

backdrop that the current study will focus on highlighting the influence of social

media political campaign on the choice of candidates among the undergraduates of the

University of Benin in the 2023 general election.

1.2 Statement of the Problem

Realizing what may have been perceived as the influence of social media, it

becomes necessary to understand the level of success or extent in which Nigeria

electorates have been involved in creating and sharing political information in the

4
form of campaigns; using social media platforms to influence the choice of candidates

in 2023 general elections in Nigeria.

Incidentally, in Nigeria, the everyday use of social media by politicians, and

the manner in which the user-citizen interacts with the social network sites/pages of

politicians has received rather less attention. Essentially, politicians expect the

communication relationship to be positive and of benefit to them, thus, political

gladiators of all shades of opinions, ideologies, intents and goals use the media with

the belief that political communication through them might exert pressure or have an

influence on people‟s perception and behaviours.

The foregoing notwithstanding, this study intends to investigate the influence

of the social media as a tool used in convincing youths to participate in elections vis-à-

vis whether or not social media is actually instrumental in projecting a positive image

of their choice of political candidates.

Despite the advantages in the adoption of social media in Nigerian political

campaigns and elections, the worries regarding the respondents‟ level of exposure to

social media political platforms, their knowledge and effective use of such platforms,

as well as the influence of such platform messages on electorates‟ voting pattern,

prompted this study.

1.3 Objectives of the Study

The objectives of this study are to:

5
1. Determine the extent to which UNIBEN undergraduates are exposed to social

media political campaigns.

2. Determine the channels through which the undergraduates of University of

Benin are exposed to social media political campaigns.

3. Determine the influence of social media political campaign on the choice of

candidates among UNIBEN undergraduates.

4. Determine the influence of social media political campaign on UNIBEN

undergraduates‟ participation in the 2023 Nigeria general elections.

1.4 Research Questions

The following research questions were design to guide the study.

1. To what extent are UNIBEN undergraduates exposed to social media political

campaigns?

2. Through what channels are the undergraduates of University of Benin exposed

to social media political campaigns.

3. What is the influence of social media political campaign on the choice of

candidates among UNIBEN undergraduates?

4. Does the social media political campaign influence UNIBEN undergraduates

participation in the 2023 Nigeria general elections.

1.5 Significance of the Study

Firstly, the significance of this study will be found in the gap it fills by

answering its research questions.

6
 Secondly, the research will be of immense benefit to University of Benin

students, politicians, political parties, media consultants, electoral umpires and

government across all levels as it will help them to know and appreciate the gains and

efficacy of using social media as a tool for political campaign and how best to handle

it for projecting the image of their clients and increasing awareness of the political

candidates.

The findings of this study will contribute to the sustainable development of

democracy in Nigeria. The youth; in which a significant number of UNIBEN

undergraduates belong to, are the future and drivers of any country, therefore

conducting researches/studies into their political, social behavior is of paramount

importance (Adedeji, 2015, p16).

Finally, this study will be of great benefit to researchers and other seekers of

knowledge in the academia, as it will contribute to the existing literature on usefulness

of social media political campaign on the choice of candidates, politics in general, and

also widen the current expansive knowledge in it.

1.6 Scope of the Study

This study aims to examine the influence of the use of social media as a

political/mobilization tool on the choice of candidates of Nigerian youths.

Only undergraduate students of the University of Benin from the ages of 15

years through 29 shall be polled.

7
 This study will examine the political participation of the aforementioned

youths for the 2023 general elections only.

This study will focus on undergraduate students of the University of Benin,

Benin City, with the aim of determining how social media political campaign

influences their perception/choice of political candidates and their participation in

elections. The undergraduate students of the University of Benin are students currently

undergoing their first degrees in the institution.

1.7 Operational Definition of Terms

Candidates: A person or subject nominated as suitable and credible to run for an

election in other to occupy a political position.

Election: This is the process of choosing a person for a political position in

government to represent the electorates of their constituency or ward.

Influence: The capacity to have an effect on the character, development, or behavior

of someone or something; or the effect itself.

Political Campaign: This is an organized effort which seeks to influence a decision

making process within a specific group. Political campaigns often refer to electoral

campaigns.

Social Media: Social media is the term often used to refer to new forms of media that

involve interactive participation. They are internet-mediated technologies that allow

people to connect with each other virtually.

8
Undergraduates of the University of Benin: These are undergraduates of the

University of Benin studying in various departments in the different faculties in the

institution.

9
 CHAPTER TWO

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

This chapter presents a conceptual review of relevant literature, the chapter

highlights previous works on the subject matter and theory adopted in this research

with the aim of providing current knowledge including substantive findings. It is

contained and explained under the following subheadings:

• Historical Review

• Historical Review of Social Media

• Conceptual review of social media

• Election

• Electioneering

• Electoral Participation

• The Role of Social Media in Mobilization for Electoral Participation

• Empirical review

• Theoretical framework

• Summary

2.1 Historical Review

2.1.1 Historical Review of Social Media

According to (Drew, 2013), the roots of social media stretch far deeper than we

might imagine. Although it seems like a new trend, sites like Facebook are the natural

outcome of many centuries of social media development.

10
 There are ongoing debates on whether e-mail could be considered a part of

social media. The predominant reasons why e-mail is not considered a social medium

are because (i) E-mail is a distribution mechanism whereas social media is a collective

mechanism and (ii) Mass communication is different from mass collaboration. But e-

mail certainly qualifies if we go by the simple definition that “social media is

conversations that happen online”. Though the debate goes on, we cannot ignore the

fact that the introduction of e-mail marked the beginning to the much more

collaborative social media years later. (Sajithra & Patil, 2013).

In the 1990s, the world was evolving rapidly to the connected forefront.

Personal computers had evolved in popularity in developed nations, and people started

realising the potential that a connected world may have. Hence rose the Internet Relay

Chats (IRCs) in 1988 which became popular in 1990. This was a rudimentary form of

text messaging and instant communication, and not until 1997 did we see the first full-

blown social medium come into being (digit.in, 2019).

Six Degrees was an online platform that allowed users to create their own

profiles and „friend‟ others on it. This was, in the true sense, a precursor of greater

days for social media, and the fact that Six Degrees also allowed users to add

unregistered people as friends too showed the global impact that social media would

eventually have all across the world. The platform was named after the „Six Degrees

of Separation‟ theory.

11
 Originally proposed back in 1929 by Frigyes Karinthy in light of a shrinking

world, the theory suggested that everyone in this world is connected and

interconnected by no more than six degrees, or individuals, in between. With the

advent of social media, the theory took even more profound a meaning, and the world

shrunk further (digit.in, 2019).

After the success of IRC, many personal websites, discussion groups and chat

groups also became popular. At the beginning of the 90s, internet access was not

completely accessible to the public. This situation changed when private Internet

service Providers (ISPs) began to start operations in the United States around 1994 or

1995. This gave millions of home users the chance to experience it. The other reason

for the initial euphoria was the fact that the content was absolutely free other than the

data usage paid to the internet companies. Early internet users were extremely

outspoken and opinionated by today‟s standards. People were thrilled at the possibility

of sharing their opinions and often went overboard in their expressions. The first

online social media etiquette standards were proposed, and called netiquette, as a

control mechanism. Internet forums grew in popularity by the late 90s and as the

primary platform for topical discussions (Sajithra & Patil, 2013).

The modern blog evolved from the online diary. Justin Hall, who began

personal blogging in 1994 is generally recognized as one of the earliest bloggers. The

other popular blogs are Dave Winer's Scripting News and Wearable Wireless

Webcam.

12
 Wearable Wireless Webcam was unique in terms of how it combined text,

video, and pictures transmitted live from a wearable computer and EyeTap device to a

web site in 1994. This practice of semi-automated blogging with live video together

with text was referred to as surveillance. Such entries were considered as legal

evidence as well. Early blogs were simply updates in common websites. However, the

evolution of tools to facilitate the production and maintenance of web articles posted

in reverse chronological order made the publishing process feasible to a much larger,

less technical, population. Ultimately, this resulted in the distinct class of online

publishing that produces blogs we recognize today. For instance, the use of some sort

of browser-based software is now a typical aspect of "blogging". Blogs can be hosted

by dedicated blog hosting services, or they can be run using blog software, or on

regular web hosting services. Blogs are recognized as a separate medium in itself

(Sajithra & Patil, 2013).

After the invention of blogging, social media began to explode in popularity.

Sites like MySpace and LinkedIn gained prominence in the early 2000s, and sites like

Photobucket and Flickr facilitated online photo sharing (Nwaoboli, 2022). YouTube

came out in 2005, creating an entirely new way for people to communicate and share

with each other across great distances. By 2006, Facebook and Twitter both became

available to users throughout the world. These sites remain some of the most popular

social networks on the Internet. Other sites like Tumblr, Spotify, Foursquare and

Pinterest began popping up to fill specific social networking niches (Drew, 2013).

13
 Today, there is a tremendous variety of social networking sites, and many of

them can be linked to allow cross-posting. This creates an environment where users

can reach the maximum number of people without sacrificing the intimacy of person-

to-person communication (Drew, 2013).

2.2 Conceptual Review

2.2.1 Conceptual Review of Social Media

Social media is the term often used to refer to new forms of media that involve

interactive participation (Nwaoboli & Asemah, 2021; Egbulefu & Nwaoboli, 2023b).

Users can create profiles, share personal information, and express their opinions,

ideas, and experiences through various forms of media, such as text, images, videos,

and audio. This user-generated content can be shared, liked, commented on, and

reshared by others, fostering a sense of community and enabling conversations and

interactions among users (Ekhareafo & Nwaoboli, 2022). Often the development of

media is divided into two different ages, the broadcast age and the interactive age. In

the broadcast age, media were almost exclusively centralized where one entity such as

a radio or television station, Newspaper Company, or a movie production studio

distributed messages to many people. Feedback to media outlets was often indirect,

delayed, and impersonal. Mediated communication between individuals typically

happened on a much smaller level, usually via personal letters, telephone calls, or

sometimes on a slightly larger scale through means such as photocopied family

newsletters.

14
 According to Kaplan and Haenlein (2010, p.61) social media can be defined

“as a collection of internet-based applications that expand the ideological and

technological foundations of Web 2.0 and that permit the creation and exchange of

user-generated content.” It includes web-based and mobile based technologies that are

used to turn communication into interactive dialogue among individuals, groups,

organizations, and communities.

Typical examples of social media platforms as it was defined by Kaplan and

Haenlein (2010, p.61) include applications such as Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp,

Flicker, 2go, Youtube and the interactive options on these platforms, such as the

retweetting option on Twitter, comment options on Facebook and share on Whatsapp.

These instruments are referred to as media because they are tools which can also be

used for the storage and dissemination of information.

Nwafor, Nnanyelugo and Aligwe (2013. p.5) assert that “when we talk of the

social media, we mean those internet-based tools, services that allow users to engage

with each other, generate content, distribute and research for information online. In

other words, the social media are interactive web based media platforms that offer

citizens opportunity and place to connect, share opinions, experiences, views, contacts,

knowledge as well as other things like job and career tips.

With the rise of digital and mobile technologies, interaction on a large scale

became easier for individuals than ever before; and as such, a new media age was born

where interactivity was placed at the center of new media functions (Egbulefu &

15
Nwaoboli, 2023). One individual could now speak to many, and instant feedback was

a possibility. Where citizens and consumers used to have limited and somewhat muted

voices but now they could share their opinions with many. The low cost and

accessibility of new technology also allowed more options for media consumption

than ever before; and so instead of only a few news outlets, individuals now have the

ability to seek information from several sources and to dialogue with others via

message forums about the information posted.

Also, social media can offer the masses the opportunity to interact freely, have

direct access to online contents that discuss political issues as well as mobilize the

electorate in general elections in the country (Nwaoboli & Asemah, 2023). Voter

education on voting process can be realized through social media, the use of voting

sensitive materials such as the card-reader, Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs) and server

which can be used to protect result to avoid hacking or falsifying and can be

guaranteed through the use of social media.

2.2.2 Conceptual Review of Political Campaigns

According to Egbilefu & Nwaoboli (2023a), political communication refers to

the process of creating, disseminating, and interpreting messages related to politics

and governance. It encompasses various forms of communication, including speeches,

debates, campaign advertisements, press releases, social media posts, and news

coverage. Arijeniwa & Nwaoboli (2023) add that political communication plays a

16
crucial role in shaping public opinion, influencing voter behavior, and facilitating the

exchange of information between political actors and the public.

A political campaign aligns nearly parallel to a business, as the marketing

department has the same responsibilities to uphold. Horst (2018) emphasizes that

responsibilities include maintaining a positive reputation in the industry, selling a

given candidate to an audience that will ultimately choose to buy into or disregard

their campaign, and catching the eye of the consumers, or voting population, to gain

interest. Like any business, marketing plays a vital role in the growth of a campaign

(Ermann and Hermanik 2018).

Minimally defined, a campaign is the period right before citizens make a real

political choice. This common knowledge typically heightens citizens‟ attention to

politics in direct relation to the proximity of the event. Lazarsfeld, Berelson, and

Gaudet (1948, p73) write that campaigns identify for the voter “a way of thinking and

acting which he is already half-aware of wanting.”

Campaigns provide voters an opportunity to update their expectations of each

candidate‟s or party‟s chances of success. A campaign is also an obvious site for

signaling by potential coalition partners (Arijeniwa & Nwaoboli, 2023). A party‟s

willingness to take on certain partners may enhance or detract from its support. A

party may alienate support by seeming too willing to embrace an unacceptable partner

as seen in the build up to Nigeria‟s 2023 general elections.

17
 That campaigns do influence citizens is fundamentally good news. Campaigns

are the moments in political life when representatives and the represented interact

most energetically. Campaigns can affect what voters know, whether they will vote,

whom they will vote for, and why they will vote for that person. Ultimately,

campaigns can affect who wins the election. Thus, the strategic decisions of

candidates are not merely empty exercises in collective war-room intellect. Both the

inputs and outputs of campaign processes can be consequential.

2.2.3 Conceptual Review of Election

The concept had been defined by different scholars and practitioners in various

ways. According to Egbulefu & Nwaobol (2023), an election is a formal process

through which individuals, typically citizens of a country or members of an

organization, choose their representatives or leaders. It is a fundamental aspect of

democratic systems and provides a means for people to participate in the decision-

making process and have a say in the governance of their society (Arijeniwa &

Nwaoboli, 2023).

According to Mackenzie (1968), elections are “ritual of choices and that their

binding character are derived from the participation of the individual as a chooser in a

social act which offers legitimate authority in the person chosen”. Here Mackenzie

recognizes the importance of elections as legitimizing the power of elected

individuals. It also enables the citizens to participate in the political affairs in their

respective polities by exercising their franchise rights to choose candidates of their

18
choice. One of the possible shortcomings of this definition was that, it failed to

acknowledge the tendency at which elections can be marred by irregularities which

consequently usurp the power of the individual voters and thus create questions on the

legitimacy of elected office holders.

However, Huntington (1991) submitted that, election has great importance in

all democratic regimes because it facilitates the competitive choice of principal

officers of government and enables political participation of the bulk of the population

in any given society. Democratic systems thus have a common institutional core that

establishes their identity and from where they derive their legitimacy. Thus, he

signifies the fundamental aspects of election which include: one, it allows candidates

to compete under different political parties` platforms by wooing voters to vote for

them. Second, it also differentiates the type of political systems – democratic or

dictatorial regimes and the source of the former legitimacy.

The above position by Huntington is correct to some extent but in Nigerian

context as in the case mentioned in the first definition, the issue of competitive choice

is questionable because in most cases candidates imposed on the parties` delegates

during primaries and on election day different factors such as emotion, vote-buying,

thuggery, rigging etc can influence the outcomes of the election and invariably kill the

momentum of competition among parties` candidates and demoralize electorates

willingness to participate.

19
 These two above definitions have captured the context of the paper as they

signified the role which the electorates play in choosing their leaders which in turn

gave leader the required legitimacy to lead over them based on the promises they

made before the elections.

2.2.4. Electioneering

According to Okoye, (1996) electioneering is the sum total of activities by

which politically interested actors seek to canvass and win votes for a preferred

candidate or political party. It also involves the partisan activities of the opposition

party or parties dedicated towards wresting power from the incumbent party through

strategic campaigns and mobilization. It is the practical manifestation of „politicking‟

in the electoral process. It further involves an effort to persuade or dissuade

prospective voters in an attempt to gain partisan advantage in the electoral process.

The act of electioneering begins with the announcement of election timetable as in the

case of Nigeria and the tensions that follow, to the actual voting on Election Day up to

the announcement of results.

Therefore, electioneering encompassed all political activities that are directly

related to election. They can be partisan or nonpartisan in nature. They range from the

formation of political parties, campaigns, rallies and meetings to the actual voting

processes and declaration of election results.

It is a truism that over the years, the electioneering process in Nigeria been

characterised with irregularities like campaigns of calumny, propaganda, voters‟

20
manipulation, money-bag and vote buying. It is almost becoming a norm in the

Nigerian political space that the highest bidders and politicians with the fattest bank

account get elected into public offices, irrespective of whether they have what it takes

to seek such political offices or not. This over time has affected delivery of quality

leadership and good governance to the people who through their mandate the

politicians got elected (Asemah et al: 2020). Elections in Nigeria have witnessed a

massive involvement of the activities of citizens. This is not unconnected with the

perceived failure of the mainstream media. This is necessitated by the fact that most

Nigerian now owned their personal medium of communication (Social media).

2.2.5 Conceptual Review of Political Participation

Participation means „sharing in‟ or „wrap oneself with‟ every dimension of life,

of culture or of economy, our educational system, our political system, our decision-

making process. But there is less than a complete agreement among the scholars about

the meaning of the concept „Political Participation‟. Political participation is the

involvement of the citizens in the political system (Falade, 2014). The citizens form

the crux of any society and it is important they are part of the political process.

According to Akamare (2003, as cited in Falade, 2014), political participation is an

aspect of political behaviour and it focuses on the way in which individuals take part

in politics. It is a voluntary activity and one may participate directly or indirectly. The

various ways by which the people can be involved in the political system include

21
selection or election of political leaders, formulation of policies, community activities

and other civic engagements.

Empirical investigation of political participation could be split between two

basic yet mutually interlinked approaches. The first approach deals with the realistic

extant level of popular engagement in the processes of governance. The chief objects

of interest are the level (local, regional, national etc.) and method (voting,

campaigning, contacting, protesting etc.) of political participation. In this context, the

influence of various manners of political participation and the motivation to either

reject participation or indeed become an active part of it are studied. Individual and

national patterns of political behaviour are also compared. Cross-national comparison

of political participation patterns concentrate largely on voting because of the

availability of internationally comparable data on voter turnout and the relevance of

national elections for the given political system. As evidenced by such international

comparisons, voter turnout shall be influenced largely by a number of institutional

factors (e.g. voter registration systems, electoral procedures, degree of political

competition in the society and the party system) which, taken together, create an

institutional environment of the given country‟s political system (Nekola, 2014).

The essence of political participation in any society, either civilized or

primitive, is to seek control of power, acquisition of power and to influence decision

making (Arijenwa & Nwaoboli, 2023). Political participation is a means of

contributing ones quota to the political system and overall development of the nation.

22
Political participation is one of the fundamental requirements of democratic

governance (Egbulefu & Nwaoboli, 2023). This is the reason why Adelekan (2010,

cited in Falade, 2014) emphasized that ideally, democracy means individual

participation in the decisions that involves one‟s life. In a democratic system, there is

the necessity for the citizenry to be fully involved in the democratic procedures of the

choice of rulers and effective communication of the public policies and attitudes. Any

claim to democratic regime or state must essentially embrace a high degree of

competitive choice, openness, and enjoyment of civic and political liberties and

political participation that involves all groups of the society.

The extent to which people participate in the political system differ from

person to person. Falade (2014) identified six types of political participants. These are:

The inactive: These are the people that take no part in any political activity. Voting

specialists: These are the people that get eagerly engaged only in voting. Besides

voting, they are not concerned about other political activities. Parochial participants:

These people participate in politics occasionally. They vote or get involved in any

other political activity only when it affects their personal interest. The communalist:

These are those who get engaged in voting regularly, they also get involved in

community affairs but they are not involved in political campaign activities. The

campaigners: They are actively involved in political campaign but inactive in other

community affairs. Complete activists: They are highly involved in all political

23
activities, they actively participate in voting, political campaign, community activities

and make contact with public officials (Falade, 2014).

2.3 Opinion Review

2.3.1 Social Media and Politics

The use of social media in recent elections, worldwide, has significantly

intensified, especially among young adults (Egbulefu Nwaoboli, 2023). Of interest for

this particular age group is the rise of social media use for political information,

creating user-generated content and expressing political views. As answer to the

growing political use of social media, researchers have investigated these media‟s

effects on political behaviour such as political participation (Muntean, 2015).

The popularity of getting political news from social media platforms is greatly

increasing. A 2014 study showed that 62% of web users turn to Facebook to find

political news. This social phenomenon allows for political information, true or not,

spreading quickly and easily among peer networks. Furthermore, social media sites are

now encouraging political involvement by uniting like-minded people, reminding

users to vote in elections, and analyzing users‟ political affiliation data to find cultural

similarities and differences (Udoka, 2015).

Interestingly, social media use has been found to be among the significant

factors influencing politics and citizens‟ political participation (Aleyomi & Ajakaiye,

2014; Ekwueme & Folarin, 2018). As a concept, political participation has attracted

numerous definitions and theorizations. Nonetheless, it incorporates all activities that

24
people engage in chiefly for the purpose of influencing the structures, choice of

candidates policies or officials of government. These activities could entail the direct

or indirect and passive or active involvement of citizens in the acts that can shape the

selection of political representatives and/or influencing the course of action of public

office holders (Nwafor, Odoemelam, Orji-Egwu, Nwankwo & Nweze, 2013; Madueke

et al., 2017).

The introduction of the social media to politics has influenced the level of

public political participation in diverse ways (Castertrione & Pieczka, 2018). The

social media draw their strength from their speed, ease of use, and universality that

make them globally accessible at a relatively low cost. Unlike the mainstream media,

there is virtually no control, code of ethics or gate-keeping on most social media

platforms, thereby opening their use to the intentions and discretions of users

(Ufuophu-Biri & Ojoboh, 2017) This unfettered latitude offered by the social media

also seems to constitute their weakness. Thus, it has been hypothesised that the

wrongful deployment of these digital technologies could result in information

overload and spread of half-truth (Akpoghiran & Erubami, 2019), moral panic,

invasion of territorial sovereignty and promotion of violence (Nwafor et al., 2013). As

argued by Chinedu-Okeke and Obi (2016), the unregulated nature of social media

creates openings for mischief-makers to promote campaigns of hate, deceit and

propaganda.

25
 The use of social media for political purposes was first experimented in

Nigeria during the 2011 general elections. Given its novelty, Okoro and Nwafor

(2013) examined the drawbacks and lessons learnt from the experimental deployment

of online platforms during the elections, and found sufficient evidence to conclude that

although online media were used to make vital inputs in Nigeria‟s political discourse,

the platforms were explored by users to attack perceived political opponents, spread

false rumours, fake news, hate speeches and inciting messages that precipitated the

tension and violence recorded before, during and after the elections in many parts of

the country. Aleyomi and Ajakaiye (2014) also found that the social media had a

significant positive influence on citizens‟ mobilisation and participation in the 2011

general elections. They concluded that online platforms were among the contributory

factors that ensured the success of the 2011 general elections which was adjudged the

freest and fairest in Nigeria since the country returned democracy in 1999.

Today, social media have become a natural part of the everyday lives of

people all over the world. In the past few years, social media have shown a rapid

growth of user counts and have been object of scientific analysis (Wigand et al., 2010;

McAfee, 2006). For example, more than 800 million people worldwide are members

of the Facebook network (Facebook, 2011) while Twitter counts more than 200

million accounts in total (HuffPost Tech, 2011). This development makes social media

fantastic tools for communicating with large audience. The arrival of these social

media platforms have continued to change the way people communicate with one

26
another around the world. For example, mobile phone penetration rates, in particular,

have resulted in a plethora of ideas for new media platforms aimed at bridging the

information divide between the well-connected and the disconnected (Unwin, 2012,

p.7). In addition, Internet-based communication has equally started to gain importance

in Nigeria in particular and Africa in general. Both mobile phones and the internet

provide exciting new opportunities for one-to-one as well as one-to-many

communication. The much reported rapid spread of mobile connectivity and services,

as well as different forms of public and shared internet access like social media have

allowed a growing number of people who may not have access to a computer or a

fixed connection to take part in “the global conversation” (André-Michel, 2010, p.4).

Thus, the use of social media in politics has continued to grow in many parts of Africa

including Nigeria since the 21st century. For instance, 2011 general elections marked

a significant milestone in the use of social media for political communication in

Nigeria. Motivated by President Barrack Obama‟s successful use of Facebook to win

the United States elections as the first black president, Nigerian politicians are indeed,

gradually taking their campaigns to the social networking sites and other online

platforms. Within the election period, political aspirants were disposing of all means

to gear up their support base, following the realization that electioneering requires

more than just handshakes and physical persuasion (Omenugha, Ukwueze, & Malizu,

2011). More so, 2015 witnessed a massive use of social networking sites like

Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Blogs in the general elections in Nigeria. Due to their

27
participatory, interactive and cost-effective nature, social media have become veritable

and significant instruments for political campaign planners in carrying out election

campaigns and other electioneering activities, political engagement and mobilization

among others. Thus, the place of social media in rallying political support is no longer

in doubt. London (Prsync) November 04, 2010, as cited in Eledan (2011) stated that:

Politics is not a spectator sport, and now people have more and easier ways to get

involved. Nigeria voters have the opportunity to participate and potentially help design

a new conversation at the political level, something that has not been possible for

years in the political landscape in Nigeria. Social media has allowed people to go back

to building communities on a much larger scale, making the world smaller in the

process for many.

The above assertion acknowledges a new media platform for politics in

Nigeria. In the past, the politicking process has been dominated by the use of

conventional mass media, regardless of the obvious disadvantage of providing one-

way non-interactive messages to a large audience. However, the latest resort to the use

of “old” and new media for political communication has added impetus to the

electorate/candidate relationships due to the interactive nature of the new media. Just

as social media has opened a dialogue between businesses and consumers, its value is

apparent to those in political office, whose work and professional survival hinges on

the needs and perceptions of their constituents.

28
 As it stands, the social web according to Farrell and Drezner (2008) is ripe

with opportunities for candidates and office holders alike to connect with voters, foster

transparency, and even spar with opponents in the same ways they have been in the

conventional media for hundreds of years. As a result, the potentials of social media

appear to be most promising in political context as they can be an enabler for more

participation and democracy.

According to Creighton (2005), public participation is the process by which

public concerns, needs and values are incorporated into governmental and corporate

decision-making. E-participation focuses not only on this process but also on using the

Internet as an additional or exclusive instrument to create dialogs between the elected

and the electorate.

Related to that, Karpf (2009) introduces the notion of “politics 2.0”, which can

be understood as the harnessing of the Internet‟s lowered transaction costs and its

condition of information abundance, toward the goal of building more participatory

and interactive political institutions. Thus, social media had been adapted by some

political aspirants in Nigeria to contact and discuss with voters as well as to

disseminate important information to them. Especially young people were inspired to

political topics using social media as communication platform (Chen et al., 2009;

Kushin & Kitchener, 2009). Social media technologies could be used to make an

impact in the political environment by achieving the following:

1. Providing sufficient illuminating political information.

29
2. Guiding targets‟ voting decision by shaping their opinion and setting political

agenda for them.

3. Educating the targets about election procedures.

4. Creating awareness about a candidate and his campaign messages vis-à-vis the

overall unfolding political issues and processes (Nwodu, 2007 as cited in

Nwabueze & Ezebuenyi, 2012).

It becomes imperative to note that the increasing advantages of new media can

be harnessed in the direction of curbing electoral fraud and subsequently enhance

Nigeria‟s democratic fortune. This is the underlying idea behind the concept of

“teledemocracy”, which Becker (2009) describes as “democratically aided, rapid two-

way political communication.” Teledemocracy simply means the application of

modern communication hardware and software in the overall democratic process with

a view to bringing about faster, far-reaching, easily accessible and more accurate

report of election results. It is a clear indication that there is a future for ideal

democracy in the world of humans and Nigeria in particular. The Nigerian political

environment may not have fully realized the full effect of the new media adopted in

the electoral process and overall political environment, but has no doubt responded

positively to the new development.

2.3.2 The Role of Social Media in Mobilization for Electoral Participation

New communications and information technologies have produced a global

revolution in arrangements of the media and society. Modern communication

30
technology makes it possible to stay connected anywhere all the time and the

flow of information is virtually unlimited. The ever-growing flow of information

in the current world of

Asemah-Ibrahim, Nwaoboli & Asemah (2022a, 2022b) explained that

,communication plays a significant part in all the political activities. The

development in present-day communication has brought new era in the politics of the

world; in this aspect, the advantages of communication are remarkable and can be

seen across the world as today, we benefit much from communication. Individuals

may use this worldwide network to network, communicate ideas, share

information, afford social support, do business, direct activities, produce creative

media, play games, participate in political debate, and so on.

The phrase (cyberspace) has become a common way to refer to everything

connected to the internet and its many cultures. The internet has created new forums of

social interaction and social relations, including social networking websites such as

Facebook and Twitter which facilitate interaction. (Asemah: 2020)

Social Media are interactive computer-mediated technologies that simplify the

creation or sharing of information, ideas, career interests and other forms of

expression via virtual communities and networks. There is no doubt that the advent of

the internet has immeasurably contributed to the introduction of social networking

sites (SNSs) (Zaru, 2016). Since the advent of social media, activists in Africa most

31
especially in Nigeria have actively used the affordances to bypass established systems

and outcry for change in the system.(Mutsvairo, 2016)

The new media technologies have arguably enhanced the communication

process in a wide range of human endeavours and the political environment no doubt

is experiencing a great deal of the impact of new media phenomenon (Nwabueze &

Ezebuenyi, 2012).

Baruah (2012) cited in Asemah and Olayemi (2021) note that social media

have done a lot in bridging communication gaps that exist amongst humans and

that they have facilitated real time interactions in a way that had never existed in

the past.

However, the growing recognition and utilization of social media and their

application in the political process underscore the role which social media have

assumed in the world today. In Nigeria for instance, the unwholesome reliance on

godfatherism is gradually giving way to online tactical crafting and packaging of

persuasive messages by campaign managers and political parties with an aim to

consciously persuade Nigerian voters to vote in their candidates (Ezebuenyi &

Ejezieh, 2012). It has been used to influence and mobilize people to fully gain

participation in general activities going on in the country.

According to Dunu & Oraka (2004), the tremendous fact of the new media

technologies has definitely furnished the communication industry with revolutionary

positive changes unprecedented. According to them, Nigeria, like other countries of

32
the world, has also benefited in terms of improved technology output, variety

offerings, improved resources and quality output occasioned by the new media

revolution. This art and science of information management through the new media

seem to be gaining more grounds in our political landscape. Thus, political advertising

is today carried online (Kur & Melladu, 2007, p.31). The election campaign that saw

Barack Obama become the President of the United States of America (USA) in 2008/

2012 was characterized by effective and efficient information management ability

interfacing the deployment of the new media technologies by his ability to use online

platforms to attract the electorate commonly known as friends of Obama with the

slogan „change is possible‟. Following the same trend, President Goodluck Jonathan

also adopted online information management skills in his 2011 presidential election

campaigns and actually become the first in Nigeria to use such strategy that has

increasingly made an inroad into our electoral process and in the overall political

environment (Ezebuenyi & Ejezieh, 2012). Social media help large groups to gather in

a short amount of time. They also provide a platform for people to express their

solidarity both within the country and with others in the region and beyond. Platforms

like Facebook, Twitter are being credited with helping to propel the Arab Revolution

(Hunter, 2011).

Still harping on the role of the new media, Ikem (2011, p.5) argues that: “The

place of social media (new media) to rally political support is no longer in doubt. To

advance the conversation and mobilize political support, social media have become a

33
crucial political tool. Facebook, Twitter and other social networks reinforce political

messages and build online and offline support that will help drive interesting debates

about any politician and/or political party. In fact, the social media provide a potential

to stream and broadcast real live political rallies and party conventions online, in such

a way that supporters, who cannot participate physically can be involved from a

distance effortlessly.”

Commenting further, Ikem (2011) observes that whereas the dependence of the

politicians on traditional media for political campaigns will certainly be noticeable and

cannot be completely discarded, modern trends of the new media seem to be eroding

the gains of the traditional media. In a changing world, it is impossible to advance

democratic change and development with old tools. Today, leaders need to understand

the role of changing communication technology for politics and society. This is the

use of the new media in the field of governance and political development to increase

citizens‟ participation in the political process. The topic, “e-government” was

presented as a vision that will give impetus to greater socio-political interactivity.

Furthermore, through the diffusion of the Internet, new media have been variously

involved in the restructuring of socio-cultural economic and political relationships and

environments all over the world (Nkala, 2012). This has been evident in the

pervasiveness of user-generated content and the ways it is used to support social

networking. The diffusion of this development is already revolutionizing all facets of

human endeavour and the political process is not left out (Nwabueze, 2005). With the

34
rise of social networking technologies, isolated actors with common aims increasingly

use online tools to connect, share, discuss and organize.

2.3.3 The Challenges in the Use of Social Media as a Political Platform in

Nigeria

In spite of the numerous advantages of social media advantages in fostering

politics, democracy and good governance in Nigeria, they equally have their

challenges. No doubt, social media platforms can be misused in disseminating

unfiltered/unverified information, hate messages and rumours which are inimical

(Asemah, Nwaoboli &. Beli, 2023) to strengthening democracy. The increasing use of

social media and other online tools has indeed led to greater privacy, monitoring as

well as regulation challenges (Ekwe, et al, 2011 as cited in Ajayi & Adesote, 2015).

For instance, a viral video of immoral conduct or lurid sex photo can instantly

infect a political campaign or career, dooming it to untimely termination (Nwaoboli,

Ezeji & Osife-Kurex, 2022). Anonymity of sources makes it difficult for strict

regulation, monitoring and prosecution of illicit acts. This makes it a vulnerable

instrument for perpetuating fraudulent acts. It also promotes piracy. This is partly

because the question of copyright and intellectual property are more complex and

difficult to define and even more difficult to regulate online. Similarly, images and

sounds can be digitally manipulated, so truth and reality are difficult to ascertain.

Social media is addictive in nature, making work/life balance hard to achieve.

35
 With the new technologies, users get more than they bargain for because of

their information overload and social network overload. (Asemah, Nwaoboli &.

Nwoko, 2023) Kidafa, Odoemelam and Elechi (2011) observe that “regulating

traditional media in the face of issues like obscenity, copyright, right to privacy, was

upheaval (sic), but have become more difficult with the emergence of social media”.

How to effect censorship without being seen as abridging rights and derailing

democracy is a dilemma for the politicians and government officials. It is also

important to reflect on the ways that ICTs are actually being used to counter

democratic processes, because so doing can help develop understanding of the policies

that need to be in place to resist such actions.

There is increasing understanding that it is not just companies and

governments that can use social media for negative purposes, and that individuals and

small groups could use it for bullying, digital monstering, or violent actions, not to

talk of fraudulent or criminal activities (419 in local parlance) (Asemah & Nwaoboli,

2022). Another challenge is the issue of relatively low penetration and access in the

country. Writing on penetration of new media in Africa, Osuala in Adibe and

Odoemelam (2011) notes that: “The diffusion of new technologies in Africa is still at a

snail speed such that the gap between the information rich developed countries and

African countries continue to increase everyday….. Africa has 13% of world

population but only 2% of the world telephone lines and 1% internet connectivity.

36
Consequently, most African countries have not been able to reap the abundant benefits

of the global information revolution in many areas of life.”

The picture painted above is still largely unchanged. Again, in many parts of

Nigeria where social media (such as, twitter, facebook) is in use, it is still mainly an

urban affair and mostly elitist. This development must have informed the Nigerian

government‟s promotion of e-government through the establishment of a Ministry of

Communication Technology to drive this initiative by deploying ICT to enhance

transparency, efficiency, productivity and citizen engagement (Aginam, 2014). Two

flagship projects – Government Service Portal (GSP) and Government Contact Centre

(GCC) have been initiated to achieve the following objectives:

1. Deploying GSP to create a single point of entry to Federal Government

Services;

2. Enhancing accountability and improving the delivery and quality of public

services through technology-enabled civic engagement (Mobile Technology,

Facebook, Twitter, Interactive Mapping, Bloggs, wiki etc);

3. Transforming government processes to increase public administration

efficiency;

4. Increasing end-user productivity by integrating many different services or data

access paths of ministries, departments and agencies (MDA); and,

37
5. Facilitating efficient response to citizens through the Government Contact

Centers (GCC) being set up in the six geo-political zones of the country

(Aginam, 2014).

So far 10 government processes from the Federal Ministries of Education;

Health; Agriculture; Industry, Trade and Investments; and Communication

Technology have been automated while the pre-incorporation and post-incorporation

processes of the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) and online payment on the

Government Service Portal are currently being automated (Aginam, 2014).

Furthermore many top government officials, including the President, now have

websites and do interact with people on facebook and twitter either directly or through

their assistants. Without doubt these efforts must have assisted Nigeria‟s upward

movement in the 2014 UN e-government ranking from 162 in 2012 to 141 out of 193

countries (Aginam, 2014).

2.4 Empirical Review

The empirical review covers researches that have been made on the subject of

this study or relating to it. These include:

Rufai (2019) evaluate “the impact of social media on University of Ilorin

undergraduates‟ level of political participation in the 2019 Nigeria general elections”

The study was guided by the agenda-setting theory. The research methodology

adopted was the survey method with questionnaires as the data collection instrument.

Findings from the study revealed that social media did have a positive influence on

38
youths‟ participation in the political and electoral process, especially the 2019 Nigeria

general elections. Social media influenced youths‟ choice of political candidate and

party but, quite amazingly, did not actually guarantee that youths voted for any

political candidate just because he or she has a social media account. Youths also

regard social media as a credible medium for political discourses and majority also

testified to the social media as making them become more politically active. This does

not come as a surprise if one considers how often and how much time youths spend on

social media daily.

Nnamani and Okafor (2019) study was on the impact of social media on the

mobilization of electorates during the 2019 general elections in Lagos and Kano States

in Nigeria. The study investigated the impact of social media messages on the

electorates of Lagos and Kano States in Nigeria during the 2019 general elections.

Three research questions were used for the investigation. The survey method was used

for the research. The Comrey and Lee (1962) formula was adopted to determine

sample size. The formula states that where the populations runs into millions and were

infinite, that 250 is good, 300 is very good and 500 is excellent. The sample size of

500 respondents was the population of the research. Copies of 500 questionnaires were

distributed but 480 of them were filled and returned. The results show that: first, there

was significant exposure to social media messages by the electorates of the two states

during the elections; second, the electorates of the two states were significantly

39
influenced by social media messages in their choice of candidates; third, social media

messages significantly reduced political problems in Nigeria during the elections.

Okeke (2016) evaluated social media as a political platform in Nigeria. The

study was anchored on the theoretical frameworks of technological determinism and

social judgment theory which suggest that exposure to Political campaigns encourages

people to “assimilate” or equate their feelings about related target attitudes. Using

electorates in the South-East of Nigeria, the paper explores the extent of youth

involvement with the social media for electioneering process. The data generated were

analyzed using frequency distribution and simple percentage. The findings indicate

that the political campaigns through the new media had significant effect on the

electorate‟s decision-making and participation in Nigerian elections. The study

therefore recommends the embracing of social media for successive political

campaigns that grants the electorate the interactive opportunity with the political

candidates.

2.5 Theoretical Framework

Asemah et al (2011, p.131), notes that "A theory is simply seen as an attempt

at synthesizing and integrating empirical data for maximum clarification and

unification". While doing researches, theories are quite important. They are important

in testing and analysing of hypotheses. According to McQuail, cited in Asemah et al

(2011), theories are set of ideas of varied status and origin, which may explain or

40
interpret some phenomena". Thus, it can be exerted that theories are important in the

prediction of phenomena related to any conducted research.

Theoretical framework helps to determine how any undertaken study is

relevant to our general understanding of the process of communication and it also

provides the foundation of any study because all researches begin with assumptions,

concepts and theories which are either proved or disproved at the end of the study.

Based on that foundation, this study is anchored on the Media Equation Theory and

Vale‟s Persuasion Theory.

2.5.1 Media Equation Theory

The concept “media equation theory” explains the setting of this study.

According to popular wisdom, humans never relate to a computer or television

program in the same way they relate to another being. Or do they? Media equation

theory provides a direct answer. The theory was proposed by Byron Reeves and

Clifford Nass in 1996. This theory predicts why people respond unconsciously and

automatically to communication media as if they were human. The bottom line of the

theory is that people treat modern communication media as if they were real social

actors. It says that established principles of interpersonal communication also predict

human responses to computers and television. This implies that people respond to

media using the same rules that govern face-to-face interpersonal interactions with

other people beyond intuitions. It is thereby justifiable to conclude that the influence

social media campaigns on the choice of candidates, involves the social media

41
campaigner communicating with the people online as if they are real social media

actors. That seems to be the only way their choice of candidate can be influenced.

However, critics say that too much emphasis is based on a psychological perspective

of communication as one-way rather than the communication emphasis on two-way

interaction focused on shared meanings.

Thus, the practical implication of the media equation is that once we turn on a

television or boot up on computer, we follow all the rules of interpersonal interaction

that we have précised throughout life (Griffin, 2000, p. 373, cited in Asemah &

Edegoh, 2013; Asemah, 2015).

2.5.2 Vale’s Persuasion Theory

Persuasion Theory is a mass communication theory that deals with messages

aimed at subtly changing the attitudes of receivers. The researcher sees this theory as a

theory that indicates that campaign messages have a significant influence on people‟s

attitude towards electioneering. The concept of persuasion originated with studies in

the 1940s and 1950s aimed at defining the optimal persuasive effectiveness of

propaganda. Researches on Persuasion Theory turned their focus to the audiences and

the content of messages. In justifying the fact that persuasion theory can be used in

politics, hence, the theory can be applied to the project research topic. Political

campaigns are persuasive in its form as it tends to influence the electorates choice of

candidates.

42
 However, messages are successful only if they embed the same opinions of the

receivers. Therefore, the focus of any campaign has to be on individual psychological

factors.

Carol S. Lilly, in “Power and Persuasion: Ideology and Rhetoric in Communist

Yugoslavia: 1944 - 1953”, concluded:

Persuasion is most effective when a communicator (campaigner) builds on

existing values and beliefs. Attempting to change people‟s values or create new ones

(thus changing culture) has proven to be highly ineffective.

Those who don‟t take part in media communications are less likely to be

persuaded.

In other words, electorates who don‟t take part in social media political

campaigns are less likely to be influenced on their choice of candidate.

2.6 Summary

The main purpose of the literature review was to survey current knowledge,

relevant works and previous studies on the subject matter. In general, the contribution

of social media political campaigns towards influencing electorate‟s choice of

candidates and ensuring peaceful elections in Nigeria cannot be over-emphasised. This

chapter discusses the history of social media in extensively reviews related works

about the impact of social media political campaigns on the choice of candidates. It

explains the conceptual framework of the study and discusses the theoretical

framework related to the study.

43
44
 CHAPTER THREE

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

This chapter discusses the method, techniques and procedure adopted in this

research with the aim of generating viable data that assisted in bringing about the

realization of the research objective. It is contained and explained under the following

subheading;

• Research design

• Population of the study

• Sample size

• Sampling procedure

• Instrument of data collection

• Validity of Study

• Realibilty of instrument

• Methods of Data collection

• Method of data analysis

3.1 Research Design

The optimal design to achieve the study's goals was determined to be a

descriptive survey design. This design has been deemed appropriate for the sort of

purpose of this study since it allowed the researcher to explain the potential of social

media political campaign on the choice of candidates.

45
 The research design proposed for this study was a descriptive survey research.

Survey design is a form of descriptive research that is aimed at collecting large and

small samples from population, in order to examine the distribution, incidence and

interaction of educational activities ( Asemah, Gujbawu, Ekharefo & Okpanachi:2017

pg 15). A descriptive survey research seeks to obtain information that describes

existing phenomena by asking individuals about their perceptions, attitudes,

behaviours or values. This study will use a quantitative method design where data will

be collected.

3.2 Population of the Study

The population of the study is the total number of objects, subject or

individuals that conform to a set of specifications in relation to the research area

(Omoera & Nwaoboli, 2023). In this research, the population of this study consisted of

the University of Benin undergraduates both from Ugbowo and Ekehuan students.

According to Unirank Review, the population of Uniben students is 77,000. Therefore

the population of the study in this research work is 77,000.

3.3 Sample Size

Given the nature and size of the population, it will be impracticable and

unrealistic to study the entire population of Uniben students; therefore only a

representative will be selected. Hence the sample size for this research.

Using the Cochran formala:

n= N/1+N (e 2)

46
 Where; n= Sample size

N= population size

e= margin of error

Let's say we want to draw a sample size with a margin of error of 5% and a

confidence level of 95% from a population of 77,000

Then we have;

n= 77,000 / 1+77,000 (0.052)

n= 77,000 / 1+ 192.5

77,000 / 193.5

n= 397.9 approximately, 398

Therefore, the sample size for this study is 398

3.4 Sampling Technique

This study made use of the Multi- Stage sampling techniques to select the

samples. This is to ensure precision and thoroughness of figures. The procedure was

appropriate for this study because the respondents were chosen in stages using the

stratified, purposive and simple sampling procedure.

In selecting a sample of 398 University of Benin students, the researcher find it

convenient to divide the students into Faculties. here, the researcher adopts the

Stratified sampling procedure. The existing faculties are: The Faculty of Agriculture,

Arts, Education, Engineering, Environmental Science, Law, Life Science,

47
Management Science, Pharmacy, Physical Science, Social Science, College of

Medicine, College of Dentistry and Veterinary Medicine.

In the second stage, making use of the random sampling; from the 15 faculties,

the researcher randomly selects three which are: Arts, Education and Physical Science

considering the fact that they have the large number of students in the school.

In the third stage, Purposive sampling method is adopted. In this sampling, the

researcher uses her judgement to choose respondents and selects those that best meet

the purpose of the study (Asemah, Ekharefo, Okpanachi & Gujbawu: 2017; pg 171).

Hence, the selection of eight departments. These include: Mass communication,

Theatre Arts, CIT (Education), Fine and Applied Arts, Physical education, Health

education, Computer education and Chemistry.

Then, from the selected departments, the researcher randomly selects 398

respondents.

3.5 Instrument of Data Collection

The research instrument used for this study is questionnaire is a collection of

data tool, which use various questions to achieve research aim (Ovie & Nwaoboli,

2022). A questionnaire is a structured form, either written or printed consist of a

formalised set of questions designed to collect information on some subject from one

or more respondents (Asemah, Ekharefo, Okpanachi &Gujbawu : 2017; pg 108). The

questionnaire instrument had two sections: The demographic and psychographic

section. The demographic section was used to elicit information about the bio-data of

48
the respondents while the psychographic section focused on the research questions

with a view to solving them.

3.6 Validation of the Instrument

Validity is a term that describes how accurate or sincere a measurement is. In

other words, the degree to which measures are helpful in making decisions pertinent to

a particular objective is the extent of validity. It is the procedure of determining if the

research instrument measures the variables that it was intended to. As a result of this,

the questionnaire will be provided to the Supervisor for review and adjustment before

being used.

3.7 Reliability of the Instrument

Reliability is a major component of a quantitative research. if an Instrument

must produced desired, its reliability must be ascertained. In order to test the reliability

of the instrument, the questionnaire was subjected to a pilot study of 20 copies of the

questionnaire. This implies that, 20 copies of the questionnaire were distributed to 20

respondents.

3.8 Method of Data Collection

The researcher made use of both primary and secondary source for the study.

For the primary source of data, copies of the questionnaire were administered to the

respondents. The questionnaire contained relevant questions both in demographic and

psychographic section. While the secondary source of data was collected through

49
research in general textbooks, relevant works done by previous research, article and

notes from the internet and library.

3.9 Method of Data Analysis

Simple tables, frequencies and percentage were adopted in the presentation and

analysis of the data generated for the study. The results were given in tabular form.

Necessary explanation were made after each table and analysing the data collected for

clarity.

50
 CHAPTER FOUR

DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS

This chapter presents and analyses the data collated through the questionnaire.

The data collected were analysed using the simple percentage method. A total of 398

copies of questionnaire were distributed and all were properly filled which accounts

for 100% return and no loss. 398 respondents therefore represent 100% of the sample

size being studied. The details of the questionnaire are analysed below using

frequencies, percentages and tables for the presentation of data.

4.1 Data Presentation and Analysis

Table 1: Distribution of Respondents by Gender

_____________________________________________________________________
Gender No of Respondents. Percentage
Male 192 48.2%
Female 206 52%
Total 398 100%
_____________________________________________________________________
Source: Field Survey 2023

Table 1 shows that the study is composed of both males and females.

However, female respondents were a bit more available to participate in the study.

Table 2: Distribution of Respondents by Age

_____________________________________________________________________
Age No of Respondents. Percentage
18 - 22 182 46%
23 - 27 148 37%
28 and above 68 17%
Total 398 100%
_____________________________________________________________________

51
Source: Field Survey 2023
Table 2 shows that the study was composed of respondents within various age

distribution. It indicates that a greater proportion of the respondents, representing 46%

are within the age of 18 - 22 years.

Table 3: Distribution of Respondents by Religion

_____________________________________________________________________
_________
Religion No of Respondent Percentage
Christianity 292 73%
Islamic 72 18%
others 34 9%
Total 398 100%______
Source: Field survey 2023

Table 3 shows that the study was composed of respondents from all Religion

However, respondents who were Christians were more involved in the study as shown

in the study, with a representation of 73% as seen above.

Table 4: Distribution of Respondents by Faculty

_____________________________________________________________________
Faculty No of Respondents. Percentage
Arts 146 37%
Education 167 42%
Physical Science 85 21%
Total 398 100%
_____________________________________________________________________
Source: Field Survey 2023

Table 4 shows that the study involved respondents from the Faculty of Arts,

Physical Science and Education. However, respondents from the Faculty of Arts and

Education were more available to participate in the study.

52
Table 5: Distribution of Respondents by Department__________________
Department No of Respondents Percentage
Mass communication 98 25%
Theatre Arts 37 9%
Chemistry 37 9%
CIT (Education) 126 32%
Fine and Applied Arts 11 3%
Physical education 29 7%
Health education. 12 3%
Computer education 48 12%
Total 98 100%
_____________________________________________________________________
Source: field survey 2023

Table 5 shows that the study involved respondents from various departments.

However, respondents from the department of Mass Communication and CIT

department were more available for the study.

Table 6: Level of Exposure to Political campaigns

_____________________________________________________________________
Variable No of Respondents Percentage
High 276 69.3 %
Very High 93 23.3%
Can't tell 9 2.2%
Low 13 3.2%
Very Low 7 1.7%
Total 398 100%
_____________________________________________________________________
Source: Field Survey 2023

Table 6 indicates that a large proportion of the respondents who chose high

69.3% and very high 23.3% relatively, are exposed to Political campaigns. While

53
others shared different opinions on their exposure. This shows that a significant

number of the respondents are exposed to Political campaigns.

Table 7: Extent of exposure to political campaigns on social media

_____________________________________________________________________
Variable No of Respondents Percentage
Very high 256 64%
High 117 29%
Can't tell 14 4%
Low 6 2%
Very Low 5 1%
Total 398 100%
_____________________________________________________________________
Source: Field Survey 2023

Table 7 reveals numerous variables used to determine the extent of respondents

exposure to political campaigns on social media. A majority of the respondents believe

that the extent to which they have been exposed to political campaigns on social media

is very high and high relatively. This is represented by 256 of 64 respondents who

opined very high and 117 of 29% who opined high.

Table 8: Social Media Political campaigns are carried out with the aid of internet
accessible devices
____________________________________________________________________
Variable No of Respondents Percentage
Agree 117 29%
Strongly Agree 256 64%
Can't tell 14 4%
Disagree 5 1%
Strongly Disagree 6 2%
Total 398 100%
_____________________________________________________________________
Source: field survey 2023

54
 Table 8 indicates that majority of the respondents as represented in the table

above agree and strongly agree that social media political campaigns are carried out

with the aid of internet accessible devices. This statement is justifiable as those who

agreed 117 of 29% and those who strongly agree 256 of 64% are well represented.

Table 9: Social Media Political campaigns influence the electorate’s choice of

political candidates
_____________________________________________________________________
Variable No of Respondents Percentage
Agree 183 46%
Strongly Agree 153 38.4%
Can't tell 24 6%
Disagree 23 5.7%
Strongly Disagree 15 3.7%
Total 398 100%
_____________________________________________________________________
Source: Field Survey 2023

Table 9 shows that respondents who opined that social media political

campaigns influence the electorate‟s choice of political candidates as represented by

those who agree 46% and strongly agree 38.4% respectively, represents a greater

percentage as against the respondents who disagreed and strongly disagreed.

Table 10: Regularity of accessing Social Media for Political campaigns during
elections
_____________________________________________________________________
Variable No of Respondents. Percentage
Daily 266 67%
Weekly 93 23%
Bi- weekly 12 3%
Fortnightly 18 5%
Monthly 9 2%
Total 398 100%
_____________________________________________________________________

55
Source: Field Survey 2023
Table 10 indicates that although most respondent assess social media on a

daily, bi-weekly, fortnightly, and monthly basis, a greater percentage of the

respondents agreed that they assess social media for political campaigns during

elections daily. This shows that the regularity of assessing social media for political

campaigns during elections are well represented.

Table 11: Level of satisfaction with Social Media usage for Political campaigns
_____________________________________________________________________
Variable No of Respondents. Percentage
Very satisfied 24 56.2%
Satisfied 126 32%
Can't tell 33 8.2%
Less satisfied 7 2%
Not satisfied 8 3.2%
Total 398 100%
_____________________________________________________________________
Source: Field Survey 2023

Table 11 clearly shows that a greater percentage of the sample size (56.2%)

and (32%) is satisfied and very satisfied respectively with social media usage for

political campaigns. Thus, validating the importance of social media usage for

political campaigns.

Table 12: What Social Media Platforms do you access political campaigns?
_____________________________________________________________________
Variable No of Respondents. Percentage
WhatsApp 27 7%
Facebook 76 19%
Instagram 103 26%
Twitter 144 36.1%

56
All SM channels 48 12%
Total 398 100%
_____________________________________________________________________
Source: Field Survey 2023

Table 12 clearly shows that a greater percentage of the respondents opted for

Twitter as the social media platforms they use to access political campaigns. In the

table above, 144 respondents representing (36.1%) validates this claim and reveals that

twitter is very much significant for political campaigns. Thus, other social media

platforms were as well represented to indicate that all the social media platforms

presented as variables are as well used to access political campaigns.

Table 13: How do you perceive the use of Social Media for Political campaign?
_____________________________________________________________________
Variable No of Respondents. Percentage
Positive 258 72%
Negative 38 9.5%
Neutral 50 12.5%
Can‟t tell 22 5.5%
Total 398 100%
_____________________________________________________________________
Source: Field Survey 2023

Table 13 reveals how the use of social media for political campaigns is being

perceived by the respondents. From all indications, a greater percentage of the

respondents 258 (72%) affirmed that social media usage for political campaign is

good. This shows that the attitude of respondents over social media usage for political

campaign is rather more positive than negative.

57
Table 14: Social Media Political campaign can be a determinant factor for your
participation in the 2023 election
_____________________________________________________________________
Variable No of Respondents. Percentage
Strongly agree 180 45%
Agree 102 26%
Can‟t tell 41 10%
Disagree 38 10%
Strongly disagree 20 5%
Neutral 17 4%
Total 398 100%
_____________________________________________________________________
Source: Field Survey 2023

Table 14 reveals that a majority of the respondents agreed that social media

political campaign can be a determinant factor for their participation in the 2023

election; 38 respondents representing (10%) disagreed while 17 of the respondents

representing (4%) were neutral about it.

Table 15: Electorate comment and participate in Political discourses on Social

Media
_____________________________________________________________________
Variable No of Respondents. Percentage
Strongly agree 263 66%
Agree 99 24.8%
Can‟t tell 16 4%
Disagree 14 3.5%
Strongly disagree 6 1.5%
Total 398 100%
_____________________________________________________________________
Source: Field Survey 2023

58
 Table 15 clearly reveals that majority of the respondents representing 66%,

strongly agrees that electorates comment and participate in political discourses on

social media. While another 99(24.8%) of the respondents also agrees to the statement.

This shows that the respondents that have been used for this finding are fully

participants in political discourses on social media.

Table 16: Social Media Political campaign is credible enough to influence your
choice of candidate
_____________________________________________________________________
Variable No of Respondents Percentage
Strongly agree 184 46.2%
Agree 125 31.4%
Can‟t tell 64 16%
Disagree 19 4.7%
Strongly disagree 6 1.5%
Total 398 100%
_____________________________________________________________________
Source: Field Survey 2023

From the data presented in Table 16, 46.2% and 31.4%strongly agree and

agree that social media political campaign is credible enough to influence their choice

of candidate… although it is clear that a significant number of respondents

representing 16% are uncertain on if social media political campaign is credible

enough to influence their choice of candidate; this is as against 4.7% and 1.5% who

disagreed and strongly disagree.

Table 17: Social Media influenced your choice of candidate

_____________________________________________________________________
Variable No of Respondents Percentage
Agree 147 37%
Strongly Agree 189 47.4%

59
Can't tell 27 6.7%
Disagree 19 4.7%
Strongly Disagree 16 4%
Total 98 100%
_____________________________________________________________________
Source: field survey 2023

Table 17 indicates that majority of the respondents as represented in the table

above agree that social media influenced their choice of candidate. This statement is

justifiable as those who agreed 147 (37%) and those who strongly agree 189 of 47.4%.

Table 18: Electorate’s participation in Political campaigns is driven to market

their choice of candidate in the 2023 elections
_____________________________________________________________________
Variable No of Respondents Percentage
Agree 104 26%
Strongly Agree 233 59%
Can't tell 29 7%
Disagree 18 4.5%
Strongly Disagree 14 3.5%
Total 398 100%
_____________________________________________________________________
Source: field survey 2023

Table 18 reveals that 233 respondents, being the highest number of

respondents as represented by 59% in the table above strongly agree that electorate‟s

participation in political campaigns is driven to market their choice of candidate in the

2023 elections.

Table 19: Social Media is credible in encouraging youth’s political participation

_____________________________________________________________________
Variable No of Respondents Percentage
Agree 197 49.4%
Strongly Agree 140 35%
Can't tell 37 9.2%
Disagree 20 5%

60
Strongly Disagree 4 1%
Total 398 100%
_____________________________________________________________________
Source: field survey 2023

Table 19 reveals that majority of the respondents agree and strongly agree that

social media is credible in encouraging youth‟s political participation. Only 24

respondents disagree and disagree as against the 37 respondents that were uncertain

4.2 Discussion of Findings

Research question one: To what extent are UNIBEN undergraduates exposed to

social media political campaigns?

In answering the research question, data presented in Table 6 and Table 7 will

be used.

In asserting the extent to which the undergraduates of UNIBEN are exposed to

social media political campaigns, respondents were asked a few questions which were

presented in item 6 and 7 of the questionnaire. Table 6 sought to know if the

undergraduates are familiar and knowledgeable about political campaigns. The data

presented in table 6 revealed that 276 respondents (69.3%) and 23.3% representing 93

respondents affirmed that they are exposed to political campaign, while 13 (3.2%) and

1.7 % representing 7 of the respondents are of the opinion that the exposure is low and

very low respectively. 9 of the respondents couldn't tell due to their uncertainty. This

shows that there is a significant gap between the number of exposed respondents as

against respondents who are not exposed. More so, Data presented in table 7 indicates

61
that 256 respondents (64%) and 29% of 117 respondents opined that the extent to

which they have been exposed to political campaigns on social media is very high and

high respectively. While 2% of the respondents are of the opinion that the extent of

exposure is low. Yet, 14 respondents representing 4% of the population are uncertain.

There‟s an indication that the extent to which the UNIBEN undergraduates are

exposed to social media political campaign cannot be argued. This has been proven by

Ikem (2011, p.5) when he argues that: “The place of social media (new media) to rally

political support is no longer in doubt. To advance the conversation and mobilize

political support, social media have become a crucial political tool. Facebook, Twitter

and other social networks reinforce political messages and build online and offline

support that will help drive interesting debates about any politician and/or political

party.

Research question two: Through what channels are the undergraduates of

University of Benin exposed to social media political campaigns?

Table 8, and 12 will be used in answering the research question.

Table 8 revealed that 64% of 256 respondents strongly agree that social media

political campaigns are carried out with the aid of internet accessible devices and the

channels in which the undergraduates of the university of Benin are being exposed to

social media political campaigns has been revealed as seen in Table 12. Table 12

shows that 27(7%) of the respondents are exposed to social media political campaigns

via Whatsapp, 76(19%) are exposed via Facebook, 103 (26%) are exposed via

62
Instagram, majority of the respondents opted for Twitter with a representation of

144(36.1%), while 48(12%) are exposed via all the listed channels. The findings

indicate that Twitter is very effective in cases of exposure to social media political

campaign. Although, according to Udoka, (2015) “social media sites are now

encouraging political involvement by uniting like-minded people, reminding users to

vote in elections, and analyzing users‟ political affiliation data to find cultural

similarities and differences.” There was no particular social media site mentioned by

Udoka (2015). That the social media platforms presented on table 12 have been

represented, justifies the statement.

It is also important to know the respondents level of satisfaction with social

media usage for political campaigns. Table 11 revealed that majority of the

respondents is satisfied and very satisfied with social media usage for political

campaigns. 126(32%) and 224 ( 56.2%) who opined that they were satisfied and very

satisfied had a higher representation.

Research question three: What is the influence of social media political campaign

on the choice of candidates among UNIBEN undergraduates?

Table 9 and 16 will be used in answering the research question.

Table 9 revealed that social media political campaigns influence the

electorate‟s choice of political candidates. 184 (46.2%) and 125 (31.4%) agreed and

strongly agreed respectively. Those who agreed and strongly agreed had a higher

representation in figures and percentage as against the respondents that disagreed and

63
strongly disagreed. The responses highlight Vale‟s Persuasion Theory, which is a mass

communication theory that deals with messages, aimed at subtly changing the attitudes

of receivers. It is not new that social media political campaign are messages aimed at

influencing the attitudes of its receivers.

Table 16 shows if the credibility of social media political campaign is enough

to respondent choice of candidate, 46.2% of the respondents agree that social media

political campaign is credible enough to influence their choice of candidate, while

31.4% strongly agree and have a better representation on the table. In another study,

Aleyomi and Ajakaiye (2014) also found that the social media had a significant

positive influence on citizens‟ mobilisation and participation in the 2011 general

elections. They concluded that online platforms were among the contributory factors

that ensured the success of the 2011 general elections which was adjudged the freest

and fairest in Nigeria since the country returned democracy in 1999.

Research question four: Does the social media political campaign influence

UNIBEN undergraduates participation in the 2023 Nigeria general elections?

Table 14, 15 and 19 will be used in answering this research question.

Table 14 sort to find out if social media political campaign can be a

determinant factor for respondent‟s participation in the 2023 election. From the

responses fetched, it was deduced that 102 respondents representing 26% and 180

respondents, representing (45%) agree and strongly agree respectively that social

media political campaign can be a determinant factor for respondent‟s participation in

64
the 2023 election. Again, this finding supports what (Aleyomi & Ajakaiye, 2014;

Ekwueme & Folarin, 2018) opined. They noted that “social media use has been found

to be among the significant factors influencing politics and citizens‟ political

participation.”

Table 15 revealed that electorates comment and participate in political

discourses on social media. This was proven by majority of the respondents who agree

and strongly agree respectively. They had a higher representation in the table.

respondents that agreed are 99(24.8%), while respondents who strongly agreed are

263(64%)

Table 19 revealed that social media is credible in encouraging youth‟s political

participation as 197 (49.4%) of the respondents agreed and 140(35%) strongly agreed,

only 20(5%) of the respondents disagreed, 4(1%) strongly disagreed and 37(9.2%)

were undecided; despite the social media banters and misuse of words observed by the

researcher on social media platforms, it is necessary to note that social media is

credible in encouraging youth‟s political participation.

65
 CHAPTER FIVE

SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

5.1 Summary

The purpose of this study was to determine the influence of social media

political campaign on the choice of candidates among undergraduates of the

University of Benin in the 2023 general election. To discover how much influence

social media political campaigns have on the choice of candidates, the survey research

method was the approach used.

In collecting data for the research work, the response used Agree, Strongly

Agree, Can‟t tell, Disagree, and Strongly Disagree; and few open ended questions in a

questionnaire administered to respondents. In analyzing the information gathered,

simple percentage and narrative analysis were used. Based on the data analyzed, it was

found out that:

1. Majority of UNIBEN undergraduates have been exposed to social media

political campaign and their level of exposure is very high

2. Majority of UNIBEN undergraduates have been exposed to social media

political campaign through various social media platforms like Facebook,

Whatsapp, Instagram; with Twitter being the most accessed platform, and they

have access to the political campaign regularly.

3. UNIBEN undergraduates strongly agreed that social media political campaign

influence their choice of candidate.

66
4. UNIBEN undergraduates have a positive perception on the usage of social

media for political campaigns and they are satisfied with it.

5. Majority of UNIBEN undergraduate‟s participation in electioneering and

political campaigns have been influenced by social media.

5.2 Conclusion

This research study has revealed the great impact of social media in political

campaigns through a review of past studies and the development of original research.

Social media‟s purpose is to build a strong brand through social networking and the

production of original content. Political candidates are able to directly engage with and

impact the voting public through the use of various social media platforms. In a world

so centered digitally, voters struggle to find a common ground that encourages

genuine human communication while mobilizing the media.

Political activity on social media platforms causes voters to form perceptions

of one another and candidates. The research conducted in this study revealed that

whether or not voters choose to engage in online political activity, their political

interest might be dampened or invigorated. The outcome of the study revealed that

UNIBEN undergraduates choice of candidate is being influenced by social media

political campaign, that the extent to which they are exposed to social media political

campaign is high and that the use of social media platforms especially Twitter as a

major medium for political/electioneering engagements is very effective and they are

satisfied with the utilization of social media.

67
5.3 Recommendations

No doubt, a research involves an investigation geared towards increasing

knowledge and providing ideas to solve problems. From this information, coupled

with an enthusiastic desire to ensure confirmatory evidence on this study, particularly

in the aspect of achieving a greater feeling of certainty for likely purpose of making

generalisation in the future; the researcher, therefore, consider it fit and essential to

make some useful recommendations: Arising from the research findings, the

researcher wishes to make the following recommendations.

1. Government should stop unnecessary and undue interference in the media,

especially on social media.

2. The Federal Government of Nigeria should strengthen its efforts in

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in every sector of the

country. A lot of Nigerian youths are gaining access to the internet every day;

and ensuring the information flow on the internet is uninterrupted, is key to the

information flow of the country.

3. Political parties, politicians, governmental agencies and ministries should

create a robust and effective social media presence to inform and educate

youths, especially on social media platforms which has a high concentration of

Nigerian youths who believe political news on social media and regards them

as credible.

68
4. The National Information and Technology Development Agency government

should monitor what goes onto the social media as many people will believe

what they read/see on it and the consequences wrong or misleading

information can only be better imagined.

5.4 Limitations of the Study

During the course of carrying out this research, the researcher encountered

some challenges such as Finance, i.e, the cost of typing, printing and especially power

supply. Similarly, the respondents were reluctant to fill the questionnaire because most

of them were in a hurry to leave the school for the election break.

69
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 APPENDIX I

Department of Mass Communication,

University of Benin,
Benin City, Nigeria
February, 2023.

Dear Respondent,

REQUEST FOR COMPLETION OF ITEMS IN THE QUESTIONNAIRE

I am a final year student of the above named department/institution. I am conducting a

research on, “INFLUENCE OF SOCIAL MEDIA POLITICAL CAMPAIGN ON

THE CHOICE OF CANDIDATES AMONG THE UNDERGRADUATES OF

THE UNIVERSITY OF BENIN IN THE 2023 GENERAL ELECTION". This

research is in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the award of a Bachelor of Arts

degree in mass communication.

I will be very grateful, if you assist me with useful answers by completing the

questionnaire below. I assure you that your responses will be treated with

confidentiality and the information given will be used strictly for the purpose of this

academic work.

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.

Yours faithfully,

Ifeoma Juliet NWEKE

Researcher.

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 APPENDIX II

QUESTIONNAIRE

Instruction: Please kindly tick (√) the appropriate option below

SECTION A: Demographics

1. What is your gender? (a) Male ( ) (b) female ( )

2. What age bracket do you belong to? (a)18 – 22 ( ) (b) )23 – 27 ( ) (c) 28 and

above ( )

3. What religion do you belong to? (a) Christianity ( ) (b) Islamic ( ) (c) Others

( )

4. Faculty (a) Arts ( ) (b) Education ( ) (c) Physical science ( )

5. Department (a) Mass communication ( ) (b) Theatre arts ( ) (c) Fine &

Applied arts ( ) (d) Computer education ( ) (e) Physical education ( ) (f)

Health Education ( )

SECTION B: Psychographics

6. Extent of exposure to political campaigns? (a) High ( ) (b) Very high ( ) (c)

Can‟t tell ( ) (d) low ( ) (e) Very low ( )

7. Extent of exposure to political campaigns on social media? (a) High ( ) (b)

Very high ( ) (c) Can‟t tell ( ) (d) low ( ) (e) Very low ( )

75
8. Social media political campaigns are carried out with the aid of internet

accessible devices? (a) Agree ( ) (b) Strongly Agree ( ) (c) Can‟t tell ( ) (d)

Disagree ( ) (e) Strongly Disagree ( )

9. Social media political campaigns influence the electorate‟s choice of political

candidates? (a) Agree ( ) (b) Strongly Agree ( ) (c) Can‟t tell ( ) (d)

Disagree ( ) (e) Strongly Disagree ( )

10. Regularity of accessing social media for political campaigns during elections?

(a) Daily ( ) (b) Weekly ( ) (c) Bi weekly ( ) (d) Fortnightly ( ) (e) Monthly

( )

11. Level of satisfaction with social media usage for political campaigns? (a)

Satisfied ( ) (b) Very satisfied ( ) (c) Can‟t tell ( ) (d) Not satisfied ( ) (e)

Less satisfied ( )

12. What social media platforms did you access political campaigns? (a)

WhatsApp ( ) (b) Facebook ( ) (c) Twitter ( ) (d) Instagram ( ) (e) All social

media channels ( )

13. How do you perceive the use of social media for political campaign? (a)

Positively ( ) (b) Negatively ( ) (c) Neutral ( ) (d) Can‟t tell ( )

14. Social media political campaign can be a determinant factor for your

participation in the 2023 election? (a) Agree ( ) (b) Strongly Agree ( ) (c)

Can‟t tell ( ) (d) Disagree ( ) (e) Strongly Disagree ( )

76
 15. Electorates comment and participate in political discourses on social media? (a)

Agree ( ) (b) Strongly Agree ( ) (c) Can‟t tell ( ) (d) Disagree ( ) (e) Strongly

Disagree ( )

16. Social media political campaign is credible enough to influence your choice of

candidate? (a) Agree ( ) (b) Strongly Agree ( ) (c) Can‟t tell ( ) (d) Disagree

( ) (e) Strongly Disagree ( )

17. Social media influenced your choice of candidate? (a) Agree ( ) (b) Strongly

Agree ( ) (c) Can‟t tell ( ) (d) Disagree ( ) (e) Strongly Disagree ( )

18. Electorate‟s participation in political campaigns is driven to market their

choice of candidate in the 2023 elections? (a) Agree ( ) (b) Strongly Agree ( )

(c) Can‟t tell ( ) (d) Disagree ( ) (e) Strongly Disagree ( )

19. Social media is credible in encouraging youth‟s political participation? (a)

Agree ( ) (b) Strongly Agree ( ) (c) Can‟t tell ( ) (d) Disagree ( ) (e) Strongly

Disagree ( )

77

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