Party politics, dearth of political ideology, and the 2023 presidential election in Nigeria

This article undertakes a critical examination of the paucity of political ideology within Nigeria's party system, with a particular focus on the 2023 presidential election. It further explores the ramifications of this deficiency on the political landscape and developmental trajectory of the country. In liberal democracies, political ideology plays a crucial role in shaping the political system and determining the course of a state's political and economic development, but Nigeria's political landscape currently suffers from a lack of political ideology. Political parties in Nigeria are not driven by ideas, beliefs, and values. They are not groups of individuals who share a common ideology, but rather serve as platforms for patronage and wealth accumulation for the political elites. This article forwards the argument that the lack of political ideology in Nigerian politics weakens the political system and creates a democratic deficit. These factors challenge the process of democratic development in Nigeria.

Abba, S. & Babalola, D. (2017). Contending issues in political parties in Nigeria: The candidate selection process. Journal of Pan African Studies, 11(1), 118–134.

Anigbolu, J. (2022). 2023: As Peter Obi’s Support Base Soars. https://independent.ng/2023-as-peter-obis-support-base-soars/

Awa, E. (1974). The Place of Ideology in Nigerian Politics. The African Review: A Journal of African Politics, Development and International Affairs, 4(3), 359-380.

Ayoade, J. A. A. (1985). Party and Ideology in Nigeria: A Case Study of the Action Group. Journal of Black Studies, 16(2), 169-188. https://doi.org/10.1177/002193478501600204

Babalola, D. (2018). Ethnicity, ethnic conflict and the elusive quest for peace in post-military Nigeria. In D. Babalola & H. Onapajo (Eds.), Nigeria, a country under Siege: Issues of conflict and its management (pp. 21–46). Cambridge Scholars Publishing.

Babalola, D. (2019). The political economy of federalism in Nigeria. Cham: Palgrave Macmillan.

Babalola, D. (2020). Ethno-religious voting in Nigeria: Interrogating voting patterns in the 2019 presidential election. The Round Table: The Commonwealth Journal of International Affairs, 109(4), 277–385. https://doi. org/10.1080/00358533.2020.1788763

Babalola, D. & Okafor, C. (2024). The Challenges of Nation-Building in Nigeria and the State-Building Alternative. Ethnopolitics, 23(1), 20-33. https://doi.org/10.1080/17449057.2022.2101308

Babalola, D. & Onapajo, H. (2024). Power-Sharing in Nigeria’s Divided Society: Structures, Conflicts and Challenges. In E. Aboultaif, S. Keil. & A. McCulloch (Eds.), Power-Sharing in the Global South Patterns, Practices and Potentials (pp. 145-167). Palgrave Macmillan.

Butler, D. (1955). Voting Behaviour and Its Study in Britain. The British Journal of Sociology, 6(2), 93-103.

Campbell, A., Converse, P., Miller, A. & Stokes, D. (1960). The American Voter, New York: Wiley.

Coleman, J. (1958). Nigeria: Background to Nationalism. Los Angeles: University of California Press.

Crotty, W. J. (1970). A Perspective for the Comparative Analysis of Political Parties. Comparative Political Studies, 3(3), 367 – 383. https://doi.org/10.1177/001041407000300301

Dudley, B (1982). An Introduction to Nigerian Government and Politics. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.

Friedrich, C. J. (1965). Ideology in Politics: A Theoretical Comment. Slavic Review, 24(4), 612-616. https://doi.org/10.2307/2492892

Gerring, J. (1997). Ideology: A Definitional Analysis. Political Research Quarterly, 50(4), 957-994. https://doi.org/10.2307/448995

Goldman, S. (1966). Voting behaviour on the United States Courts of Appeals, 1961-1964. The American Political Science Review, 60(2), 374-383. https://doi.org/10.2307/1953364

Hamalai, L., Egwu, S. and Omotola, J. (2016), Nigeria’s 2015 General Elections: Continuity and Change in Electoral Democracy, Cham: Palgrave Macmillan.

Hassan, I. (2023). Nigeria: Trust and turnout define 2023 elections. Chatham House, https://www.chathamhouse.org/2023/03/nigeria-trust-and-turnout-defin...

Hill, K. Q. & Leighley, J. E. (1993). Party Ideology, Organisation, and Competitiveness as Mobilising Forces in Gubernatorial Elections. American Journal of Political Science, 37(4), 1158-1178. https://doi.org/10.2307/2111548

Katsina, A.M. (2016). Peoples Democratic Party in the Fourth Republic of Nigeria: Nature, Structure, and Ideology, Sage Open, 6(2), 1-11 https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244016651910

Kurfi, A. (1983). The Nigerian General Elections of 1959 and 1979 and the Aftermath. Lagos: Macmillan Nigerian Publishers Ltd.

Labour Party (2006), A Manifesto. Abuja: Labour Party Secretariat.

La Presse (2023). Peter Obi: The Nigerian candidate in search of his “Macron moment”. https://www.lapresse.ca/international/afrique/2023-01-02/peter-obi/l... (2 January 2023)

Lijphart, A. (1979). Religious vs. Linguistic vs. Class Voting: The "Crucial Experiment" of Comparing Belgium, Canada, South Africa, and Switzerland. American Political Science Review, 73(2), 442-458. https://doi.org/10.2307/1954890

Loewenstein, K. (1953). Political Systems, Ideologies, and Institutions: The Problem of their Circulation. The Western Political Quarterly, 6(4), 689- 706. https://doi.org/10.2307/443198

Mimiko, N. O. (2007). Party formation and electoral contest in Nigeria: The Labour Party and the 2007 election in Ondo state. Journal of African Elections, 6(2), 114-133.

Morse, A. D. (1896). What is a Party? Political Science Quarterly, 11(1), 68-81. https://doi.org/10.2307/2139602

Obadare, E. (2006). Pentecostal Presidency? The Lagos-Ibadan ‘Theocratic Class’ & the Muslim ‘Other’. Review of African Political Economy, 33(110), 665-678. https://doi.org/10.1080/03056240601119083

Onapajo, H. (2012). Politics for God: Religion, Politics and Conflict in Democratic Nigeria. The Journal of Pan African Studies, 4(9), 42-66.

Ostrowski, M. (2023). The ideological morphology of left–centre–right. Journal of Political Ideologies, 28(1), 1-15. https://doi.org/10.1080/13569317.2022.2163770

Seliger, M. (1976). Ideology and Politics. London: George Allen & Unwin.

Stokes, S.C. (1999). political parties and democracy. Annual Review of Political Science. 2, 243–267. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.polisci.2.1.243

Suberu, R. (2007). Nigeria's Muddled Elections. Journal of Democracy, 18(4): 95-110. https://doi.org/10.1353/jod.2007.a223243

Tar, U. A. (2009). Organised labour and democratic struggles in Nigeria. Information, Society and Justice, 2(2), 165-181

The Guardian (Nigeria) (2023). Dogara dumps Bauchi governor, endorses APC’s Abubakar. 09 March https://guardian.ng/politics/dogara-dumps-bauchi-governor-endorses-a... (Accessed 15 August 2023).

Yagboyaju, D.A. (2011), Nigeria’s Fourth Republic and the Challenge of a Faltering Democratization, African Studies Quarterly, 12(3), 93-106.