Nigeria Postpones Presidential Elections

A Nigerian poll worker assists with elections in 2015. (Wikimedia Commons)

Just five hours before polls were scheduled to open on February 16, Nigeria’s Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) announced that the country’s presidential elections would be pushed back one week until February 23. Following an emergency meeting in the Nigerian capital of Abuja, the INEC chairman, Mahmood Yakuba, cited the welfare of Nigerian democracy as the reason for this decision, stating that "following a careful review of the implementation of its logistics and operational plan and the determination to conduct free, fair and credible elections, the commission came to the conclusion that proceeding with the elections as scheduled is no longer feasible." Soon thereafter, the INEC released a schedule for addressing various challenges prior to the election date, appealing for understanding from the Nigerian constituency.

Still, the last-minute decision was met with intense frustration, as many Nigerians traveled long distances in order to vote. People could be found sleeping at polling stations, hoping to avoid lines; others arrived to closed polls in the morning. Nigeria does not have an absentee voting system, and some will be unable to make the long journey again next weekend. Both of the leading candidates, current President Muhammadu Buhari and former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, are critical of the delay. In fact, Abubakar alleged that this was a move intended to improve Buhari’s chances: “By instigating this postponement, the Buhari administration hopes to disenfranchise the Nigerian electorate in order to ensure that turn out is low on the rescheduled date.”

In response, Buhari’s campaign released a statement asserting that Abubakar was never fully prepared for the election, but instead was utilizing the setback to "orchestrate more devious strategies to try and half President Buhari's momentum." INEC Chairman Yakuba denied that the decision was politically charged, instead pointing to a massive dust storm that prohibited the distribution of polling materials to the nearly 120,000 stations, among other logistical difficulties. The electoral commission maintains that this was the most responsible choice in order to address these challenges amid a controversial election cycle.