How rural Nigerians may vote in 2023 presidential poll, by Nextier Survey
SOME Nigerians in rural areas have declared that issues of insecurity, unemployment, weak economy and bad governance would largely influence their voting choices ahead of the 2023 presidential poll.
A study of results obtained from recent opinion polls conducted among registered voters in rural communities across the country shows that eight out of 10 respondents ( 83.16 per cent) insist on not changing their minds before the polls.
The independent survey conducted by Nextier, a policy think- tank, largely entails a face- to- face poll of registered voters in rural communities in 12 states in Nigeria.
The survey defines rural communities as local government areas without tertiar y educational institutions.
The researchers intentionally excluded state capitals and other urban areas, which other recent surveys had concentrated on.
The survey team conducted the polls in two states in each of the six geopolitical zones in the country, targeting one Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP)- controlled state and one All Progressives Congress ( APC)- controlled state, in each geopolitical region.
The APC and PDP are the major political parties with vast membership and ‘ structures’ across all geopolitical zones.
Nigeria has six geopolitical zones: North Central, North East, North West, South South, South East, and South West.
To ensure objectivity, the survey excluded the home states of the leading presidential and vice presidential candidates of the major parties.
In the survey results released over the weekend, Nextier said it used a sample size of 2,000 respondents.
The states in the survey included Nasarawa ( APC), Benue ( PDP), Gombe ( APC),
Bauchi ( PDP), Kebbi ( APC), Sokoto ( PDP), Cross River ( APC), Edo ( PDP), Imo ( APC), Abia ( PDP), Ogun ( APC), and Oyo ( PDP).
Survey respondents stated that radio, social media, and family/ friends are the main channels through which they get information on the presidential candidates and make their choices.
It is instructive that with just about three months to the elections, eight out of 10 respondents “are definite that nothing will make them change their minds and vote for another candidate.”