Mixed Study of Digital Impersonation on X and Its Implications for Electoral Credibility and Response Mechanisms in Nigeria’s 2027 Elections

Abstract

The return of militocracy in the Sahel part of West African States represent the peak of the crisis in liberal democracy in Africa. The democratically surviving West African States are under pressure to resist democratic siege by upholding electoral credibility. In Nigeria, a head of the 2027 general elections, the abuse of digital public space and digital impersonation of X handle belonging to the current Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), has resulted to polysemic interpretations of how credible will the 2027 general elections be. This study examines tweets’ posts and comments on the said impersonated X account in order to: determine reasons for digital impersonation; assess factors responsible for the twits and comments in the impersonated account; as well as evaluate the newly created X account with a view to ascertai whether the impersonated and new accounts have implications on electoral credibility of the 2027 elections in Nigeria. Using census survey and content analysis, the study found that the impersonated X account of the INEC Chairman created on September 6^th 2022 contain politically biased twits and comments in favour of the ruling party and President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, thereby creating electoral phobia that the 2027 elections cannot be free nor fair. Also, the new X account and the use of cybercrime act by the electoral umpire chairman in defending credibility by shutting down scrutiny in digital spaces has dented the image of the 2027 elections, thereby creating vacuum for Nigerian democracy shifting towards the new order of the Sahel Alliance in West Africa.The study concluded that the controversy surrounding the impersonated X account poses a significant risk to the credibility of the 2027 general elections and has contributed to the erosion of public trust in the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) under its current leadership. Major recommendations to mitigate these risks and restore confidence include the implementation of e-voting, the electronic transmission of electoral results, and the appointment of a credible and neutral INEC chairman in Nigeria.