2011 General Elections: Free and Fair?

In the countdown to 2011 general elections, both President Goodluck Jonathan and the INEC chairman – Professor Attahiru Jega have assured Nigerians that the polls will be credible and that the people’s vote will count. In continuation of its electoral surveys, NOI Polls asked Nigerians what they think about some of the candidates’ bids to for the presidency.

Respondents were asked the question ‘Do you think that the 2011 general elections will be free and fair?’. 74% replied in the affirmative, 12% said ‘NO’ and 14% answered ‘Don’t Know’.

Nigerians’ Views on Selected 2011 Presidential Aspirants

In the run up to the 2011 presidential elections, several prominent Nigerians have formally declared their intention to run for the highest office in the land. In continuation of its electoral surveys, NOI Polls asked Nigerians what they think about some of the candidates’ bids to for the presidency.

Ibrahim Babangida

While nearly all of those quizzed (97%) are aware that Ibrahim Babangida has declared his intention to run for the 2011 presidential elections, only 27% think he should run for office.

When asked why they think he should run for office, 76% of those who think he should run said that it is within his rights as a Nigerian, 9% said that he is a good man and 8% said that they believe he is competent enough to be president.

Of the 69% who think he should not run, 19% cited his reputation as being poor, 19% said that they dislike him, 17% said that he is corrupt and another 17% said that they want a new generation of leaders.

Atiku Abubakar

Awareness of Atiku Abubakar’s presidential aspirations is also high at 90%, however only 27% of respondents think that he should run while 70% believe he shouldn’t run for president.

The highest proportion of those who believe that he should run (87%) say that it his right to do so.

54% of those who think Ribadu should run for president say it is his right while 13% justify his candidacy citing that he is a good man. 10% of those supporting Ribadu’s decision to run do so as a result of their view that he represents a new generation of Nigerian leaders.

The majority of those who think that Ribadu should not run (59%) cite his inexperience as their reason, while 13% generally dislike him.

Survey Results

This survey shows that Nigerians’ awareness of the presidential candidates in the forthcoming elections is generally high. The poll also highlights the opinions held by Nigerians about different candidates. Finally, the poll underscores the fact that Nigerians are generally optimistic about the 2011 general elections.

Survey Methods

Respondents for the snap poll were randomly selected from a database of phone owning Nigerians aged 15 and above, compiled by NOI Polls. 1,008 people took part in the telephone interviews from the 20th to 23rd of September, 2010. For a sample of this size, we can say with 95% confidence that the maximum margin of sampling error is ±3 percentage points. The margin of error reflects the influence of data weighting. In addition to sampling error, question wording and practical difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or bias into the findings of public opinion polls.