The absence of robust civic engagements, the citizenry’s lack of trust in the electoral process, and governance, economic hardship, as well as, the twin evil of vote-buying and voter apathy may all play diverse roles in tomorrow’s gubernatorial election in Ondo State. Since 2011, voter turnout in Ondo State has never exceeded 40 per cent, but as over two million registered voters go to the polls to elect a new governor, the processes leading to tomorrow’s climax have failed to inspire voters’ confidence. MUYIWA ADEYEMI, SEYE OLUMIDE, LAWRENCE NJOKU, AYODELE AFOLABI, ADEWALE MOMOH, and IBRAHIM OBANSA, examine some of the factors that make the exercise less interesting, and how they may likely affect voting.
With the stark failure of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to prosecute suspected electoral violators during the 2023 General Elections, and those that committed breaches in the subsequent off-season elections, there are strong indications that tomorrow’s gubernatorial poll in Ondo State, may not be anything radically different.
