Project – Electoral Information Disorder and Voter Decision-Making in the Digital Era: A Study of Social Media Users in Port Harcourt City Local Government Area, Rivers State.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the Study

Elections constitute one of the most important mechanisms through which citizens participate in democratic governance. In representative democracies, elections provide citizens with the opportunity to select political leaders, evaluate competing programmes and policies, and influence the direction of government. For elections to perform these functions effectively, voters require access to credible, timely and comprehensible political information. The quality of electoral information available to citizens can therefore affect how they understand candidates, parties, electoral procedures and political issues, and ultimately how they make voting decisions. In this sense, the integrity of the information environment is an important component of democratic integrity.

The transformation of the contemporary information environment has fundamentally altered the way citizens obtain political information. Traditionally, voters depended heavily on newspapers, radio, television, political rallies, interpersonal communication and other conventional sources. The emergence of the internet and social media has expanded this environment by allowing citizens to obtain, produce and redistribute political information with unprecedented speed. Platforms such as Facebook, WhatsApp, X, YouTube, Instagram and TikTok have become important spaces for political communication, campaign mobilisation and public debate. Unlike traditional media, social media users are simultaneously consumers and distributors of information, meaning that an ordinary user can potentially circulate political claims to hundreds or thousands of people without editorial review.

This transformation has created significant democratic opportunities. Social media can lower the cost of political communication, facilitate interaction between citizens and political actors, increase access to campaign information, support civic mobilisation and provide opportunities for citizens to express political opinions. During elections, social media can also provide rapid information about candidates, campaign activities, polling procedures, election-day developments and official announcements. The interactive nature of these platforms allows voters to compare viewpoints and participate in political discussions rather than merely receiving information from traditional media gatekeepers.

However, the same characteristics that make digital platforms useful for democratic communication also make them vulnerable to information disorder. Wardle and Derakhshan (2017) distinguish between misinformation, disinformation and mal-information as different dimensions of information disorder. Misinformation involves false information shared without necessarily intending to cause harm, whereas disinformation refers to deliberately created or disseminated false information intended to deceive or cause harm. Mal-information, in contrast, involves genuine information that is deliberately used in a harmful or misleading context. These distinctions are particularly important during elections because false or manipulated information can concern issues that directly affect citizens’ political choices.

The problem has become increasingly important because social media systems reward content capable of attracting attention, engagement and rapid circulation. Sensational claims, emotionally charged messages, provocative headlines, manipulated images and short videos can therefore travel quickly. Lazer et al. (2018) argue that the contemporary digital information environment has created new opportunities for the production and dissemination of false information, with important implications for democratic processes. Similarly, Allcott and Gentzkow (2017) demonstrate that fabricated political stories can circulate within digital environments and potentially influence political attitudes and behaviour.

Electoral information disorder may take several forms. It can include fabricated claims about candidates, false statements concerning political parties, manipulated photographs and videos, fake opinion polls, misleading interpretations of electoral laws, false announcements concerning voting procedures, fabricated election results, impersonation of public institutions, misleading claims about candidates’ backgrounds, and conspiracy narratives concerning electoral management bodies. Such information can also be mixed with genuine information in ways that make verification difficult. UNESCO (2018) consequently identifies digital and social media platforms as important conduits through which information disorder can emerge and spread, while emphasising the importance of verification and media and information literacy.

The Nigerian electoral environment provides an important context for examining this phenomenon. Nigeria’s large and increasingly connected population has made digital communication an important part of political life. Ahead of the 2023 general elections, concerns about false and misleading information became particularly prominent. Reuters reported that Nigerian fact-checkers were working to counter a surge of election-related fake news and disinformation circulating through social media platforms, including fabricated endorsements and false statements attributed to political actors. The report also noted concerns that misleading information could influence voters and weaken public trust in the electoral process.

The 2023 general elections provided particularly strong evidence of the complexity of Nigeria’s digital electoral environment. The European Union Election Observation Mission (EU EOM) reported that information moved rapidly across social media platforms and that WhatsApp was especially prominent. It observed that influential political actors sometimes disseminated unverified or false information targeting opponents and that misleading content contributed to an already difficult information environment. The Mission further reported that false narratives based on ethnic and religious sentiments were communicated through simple images and videos, while harmful content targeted political actors, the electoral management body and the mainstream media.

The Nigerian case is particularly significant because the credibility of electoral information is connected to public confidence in electoral institutions. Where citizens encounter conflicting claims about election procedures, results or the activities of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), they may find it difficult to distinguish verified information from partisan narratives. The EU Election Observation Mission noted that shortcomings in electoral administration and public communication during the 2023 elections reduced trust in the electoral process. At the same time, social media platforms were reportedly misused to circulate harmful content, while the measures available for protecting electoral information integrity were considered insufficient.

The official INEC report also demonstrates the scale and importance of electoral administration in Rivers State. Rivers State had 23 Local Government Areas, 319 Registration Areas and 6,866 Polling Units during the 2023 general elections. The state had 3,537,190 registered voters, of whom 3,285,785 collected their Permanent Voter Cards. Port Harcourt served as the state capital and major commercial centre. These figures indicate the large number of citizens for whom reliable electoral information is necessary to participate meaningfully in elections.

The importance of information becomes even clearer when considering the decisions voters must make. Voters may use information to determine which candidate or political party to support, whether to participate in an election, which issues to prioritise, whether to trust particular political claims, and whether electoral institutions are acting fairly. If the information used in making these decisions is inaccurate or deliberately manipulated, voters may make decisions based on false premises. Electoral information disorder can consequently affect not only candidate preferences but also perceptions of electoral legitimacy, voter confidence and willingness to participate.

The relationship between exposure to false information and voter decision-making is not necessarily straightforward. Citizens do not all respond to the same information in identical ways. Existing political beliefs, partisan attachments, education, political knowledge, trust in information sources and digital literacy may affect how individuals evaluate information. Research on false political information has shown that individuals can be more receptive to claims that correspond with their existing political orientations. Pennycook and Rand (2021), for example, emphasise the importance of reasoning and accuracy considerations in understanding people’s susceptibility to misinformation, suggesting that the problem cannot be reduced simply to a lack of intelligence or education.

Digital platforms may also facilitate the formation of politically homogeneous information environments. When users primarily follow political actors, influencers, friends or groups who share their views, they may repeatedly encounter information consistent with their existing preferences. This can strengthen political perceptions and make contradictory information easier to reject. In an electoral context, such environments can encourage confirmation bias, partisan interpretation and selective acceptance of political claims.

The Nigerian situation illustrates why these issues deserve systematic investigation. During the 2023 elections, social media was simultaneously used for legitimate voter education, political mobilisation and the dissemination of misleading information. The EU Election Observation Mission reported that only a small proportion of posts by key contestants focused on their electoral programmes, while unverified claims and harmful narratives circulated widely. This suggests that the digital electoral environment cannot simply be understood as an additional channel for campaign communication; it is also a contested information space in which competing political narratives are produced, challenged and amplified.

Recent Nigerian scholarship has further drawn attention to the role of fake news in the country’s democratic process. Balogun (2025), in an analysis of the 2023 general elections, argues that misinformation concerning candidates and the electoral management body contributed to distrust and had implications for voter participation. Similarly, Adedayo and Asonibare (2026) identify ideological and pragmatic dimensions in fact-checked fake news associated with the 2023 Nigerian election discourse, showing how false political content can be embedded within partisan and ideological narratives.

The problem is particularly worthy of attention in Port Harcourt City Local Government Area of Rivers State. Port Harcourt is an important urban centre with a politically active population, extensive media exposure and significant use of digital communication. Residents interact with political information through multiple channels, including WhatsApp groups, Facebook pages, X, TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, online newspapers and political blogs. This creates an information environment in which official information, journalism, personal opinions, political propaganda, satire, rumours and fabricated claims can coexist.

For social media users in Port Harcourt City LGA, electoral information may come from friends, family members, political supporters, influencers, journalists, political parties, candidates, civil society organisations and anonymous accounts. The credibility of these sources may not always be easy to determine. A message circulated through a trusted WhatsApp group, for example, may be accepted because it comes from a familiar person even when its original source is unknown. Similarly, a political video with thousands of views or shares may appear credible because of its popularity rather than because its claims have been independently verified.

Another dimension of the problem is the increasing sophistication of digital manipulation. Political information can now be altered through photo editing, video manipulation, misleading captions, impersonation and, increasingly, synthetic or AI-assisted content. The growth of such technologies means that voters may encounter content that appears authentic while actually being manipulated. The challenge therefore extends beyond identifying obviously fabricated stories to determining the authenticity, context and provenance of apparently credible digital content. Recent reporting by Reuters has highlighted how advances in artificial intelligence are making deceptive visual content increasingly convincing and consequently increasing the importance of verification.

At the same time, it would be inappropriate to assume that social media is inherently harmful to electoral decision-making. Social media can also improve access to reliable information. Election management bodies, journalists, civil society organisations and fact-checking organisations can use digital platforms to correct false claims and provide voters with verified information. During Nigeria’s 2023 elections, civil society organisations, fact-checkers and media organisations undertook initiatives to protect the integrity of the online information environment. The EU Election Observation Mission recognised the contribution of these organisations while also noting the scale of the information challenge.

This creates an important research question: to what extent does electoral information disorder affect the decision-making of social media users in Port Harcourt City Local Government Area? Although existing studies have examined fake news, misinformation, political communication and social media use in Nigeria, many have focused on national-level elections or general political participation. There remains a need for location-specific empirical research that examines how ordinary social media users interpret electoral information and whether exposure to misleading or false information is associated with their candidate preferences, political judgments, trust and voting decisions.

The present study therefore focuses on electoral information disorder and voter decision-making among social media users in Port Harcourt City Local Government Area of Rivers State. The study conceptualises electoral information disorder broadly to include misinformation, disinformation, manipulated content, misleading electoral claims, fabricated political information and false narratives encountered through social media. Voter decision-making refers to the processes through which voters evaluate electoral information and arrive at choices concerning candidates, parties, participation and voting behaviour.

By concentrating on social media users within a specific Local Government Area, the study seeks to move beyond broad claims about the influence of social media and examine the phenomenon within a defined social and geographical context. The study is expected to contribute to understanding whether exposure to electoral information disorder is associated with the way voters assess candidates, evaluate political claims and make electoral choices. It may also provide useful evidence for electoral authorities, political parties, civil society organisations, journalists, fact-checkers and digital platforms seeking to improve the quality of Nigeria’s electoral information environment.

1.2 Statement of the Problem

The credibility of information available to voters is fundamental to meaningful electoral participation. In a democratic system, citizens are expected to make political choices based on information about candidates, parties, policies, electoral procedures and issues of public interest. However, the rapid expansion of social media has created an environment in which accurate information and false or misleading information can circulate side by side, often at extraordinary speed. UNESCO (2018) identifies misinformation and disinformation as significant challenges within contemporary digital information systems and emphasises the need for verification and media and information literacy.

The problem has become particularly significant during elections because political actors and their supporters have strong incentives to influence public opinion. False information can be used to discredit opponents, promote candidates, create fear, manipulate perceptions of electoral integrity, suppress participation or mobilise partisan support. The 2023 Nigerian general elections demonstrated the seriousness of this problem. The EU Election Observation Mission reported that social media platforms were used to spread unverified and false information, including narratives based on ethnic and religious sentiments. It also found that the measures implemented by platforms to protect electoral integrity were insufficient in relation to the scale of the problem.

A major problem is that social media users may have difficulty determining whether electoral information is genuine. Unlike traditional news organisations, most social media platforms do not require every political claim to pass through professional editorial processes before publication. Consequently, an individual can create a political message, attach an image or video and distribute it to a large audience almost instantly. Once a misleading claim becomes widely circulated, subsequent corrections may struggle to reach the same audience or may be rejected by individuals who have already accepted the original information.

This creates a potential problem for voter decision-making. When voters are exposed repeatedly to inaccurate claims about candidates or political parties, they may develop perceptions that are not supported by reliable evidence. A false allegation about a candidate’s character, for instance, may affect the candidate’s perceived credibility. Similarly, fabricated information about electoral procedures may discourage voters from participating, while false claims about election results may reduce confidence in the democratic process. Balogun (2025) specifically identifies the circulation of misinformation concerning candidates and the electoral umpire as a problem during Nigeria’s 2023 elections and links it to distrust and voter participation.

The problem is further complicated by political polarisation. Social media users may be more inclined to believe, share or defend information that supports their preferred candidate or political group. This means that electoral information disorder can become embedded in existing political divisions. Rather than evaluating claims primarily on the basis of evidence, voters may assess information according to whether it supports or threatens their political preferences. Such a situation can produce competing realities in which supporters of different candidates accept completely different accounts of the same political event.

Port Harcourt City LGA presents a relevant setting for examining this problem because of its importance within Rivers State’s political and urban environment. As part of a state with millions of registered voters and thousands of polling units, the city operates within a complex electoral information system involving political parties, candidates, journalists, civil society organisations, government institutions and large numbers of social media users. INEC’s 2023 report confirms the extensive electoral infrastructure and large registered electorate in Rivers State. Yet available evidence about electoral misinformation is generally presented at national or broad regional levels, leaving limited empirical understanding of how the problem manifests among social media users within Port Harcourt City LGA.

Furthermore, there is a tendency in public discussions to assume that exposure to misinformation automatically produces belief in false information and consequently changes voting behaviour. Such an assumption requires empirical examination. Some voters may believe false information, some may reject it, while others may encounter it without allowing it to influence their voting decisions. The effects may also vary according to political knowledge, education, frequency of social media use, trust in particular sources and ability to verify information. Therefore, the actual relationship between electoral information disorder and voter decision-making cannot be adequately established through assumptions or anecdotal observations.

Another problem is the coexistence of beneficial and harmful political information on social media. Social media platforms can provide voters with official electoral information, candidate statements, policy discussions and fact-checking materials. At the same time, the same platforms can carry manipulated images, false claims, propaganda and rumours. The challenge facing voters is therefore not merely access to information but the ability to distinguish reliable information from unreliable information. UNESCO’s emphasis on media and information literacy is relevant because citizens increasingly need skills to assess sources, verify claims and identify misleading content.

The problem is also evolving with technological developments. Manipulated images, edited videos, fake accounts and synthetic content can make electoral disinformation more difficult to detect. The increasing availability of tools capable of generating or altering realistic digital content means that voters may encounter political material whose authenticity is difficult to establish through ordinary observation. This makes the traditional assumption that “seeing is believing” increasingly problematic in the digital electoral environment.

Despite the importance of these issues, there remains a relative shortage of location-specific empirical studies examining the relationship between electoral information disorder and voter decision-making among social media users in Port Harcourt City LGA. Existing Nigerian discussions have established that misinformation and disinformation occurred during the 2023 elections, but they do not by themselves establish how social media users in this particular LGA respond to electoral information disorder or the extent to which it affects their voting decisions.

The central problem of this study, therefore, is the uncertain extent to which exposure to electoral information disorder on social media influences the decision-making of voters in Port Harcourt City Local Government Area, Rivers State. Without empirical evidence, it is difficult to determine whether electoral information disorder merely creates online political noise or whether it significantly influences voters’ candidate preferences, political judgments, trust in electoral institutions and voting-related decisions.

This study consequently seeks to investigate the forms and prevalence of electoral information disorder encountered by social media users in Port Harcourt City LGA and determine its relationship with voter decision-making. The findings may provide evidence for strengthening voter education, digital literacy, electoral communication, fact-checking and strategies for protecting the integrity of Nigeria’s digital electoral environment.

1.3 Purpose of the Study

The general purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between electoral information disorder and voter decision-making among social media users in Port Harcourt City Local Government Area, Rivers State.

Specifically, the study seeks to:

1. examine the major forms of electoral information disorder encountered by social media users in Port Harcourt City LGA;
2. determine the extent to which social media users are exposed to electoral misinformation and disinformation;
3. examine the major sources and channels through which electoral information disorder reaches social media users;
4. assess the extent to which electoral information disorder influences voters’ perceptions of political candidates and parties;

1.4 Research Questions

The following research questions will guide the study:

1. What are the major forms of electoral information disorder encountered by social media users in Port Harcourt City LGA?
2. To what extent are social media users in Port Harcourt City LGA exposed to electoral misinformation and disinformation?
3. What are the major sources and channels through which electoral information disorder reaches social media users?
4. To what extent does electoral information disorder influence voters’ perceptions of political candidates and political parties?

1.5 Research Hypothesis

The following null hypothesis will be tested at 0.05 level of significance:

H₀: There is no significant relationship between exposure to electoral information disorder on social media and voter decision-making among social media users in Port Harcourt City Local Government Area, Rivers State.

1.6 Significance of the Study

The study will be significant to several groups.

Electoral Management Bodies

The findings will provide useful information to the Independent National Electoral Commission and other electoral stakeholders concerning the information challenges encountered by voters on social media. Understanding the types of false or misleading information encountered by voters can assist in developing more effective voter education and public communication strategies.

Voters and Social Media Users

The study may improve awareness among social media users concerning the dangers of accepting and sharing unverified electoral information. It may encourage voters to examine sources, compare claims with official information and verify political content before relying on it for electoral decisions.

Political Parties and Candidates

Political parties and candidates may benefit from the study by understanding how digital information environments influence voters. The findings may encourage political actors to adopt more responsible communication practices and discourage the use of misleading information as a campaign strategy.

Journalists and Fact-Checking Organisations

The findings may help journalists and fact-checking organisations identify categories of electoral claims that require greater attention. Evidence from the study could support targeted fact-checking campaigns and public awareness initiatives in Port Harcourt and Rivers State.

Government and Policymakers

Government agencies and policymakers may use the findings in developing policies and programmes relating to digital literacy, electoral communication, responsible social media use and democratic participation.

Civil Society Organisations

Civil society organisations involved in voter education, election monitoring and democratic governance may find the study useful in designing programmes that address information disorder and strengthen citizens’ capacity to evaluate political information.

Researchers and Students

The study will contribute to the growing body of literature on digital political communication, misinformation, disinformation and electoral behaviour in Nigeria. It may also provide a basis for future research on electoral information disorder in other Nigerian cities and Local Government Areas.

1.7 Scope of the Study

The study focuses on Electoral Information Disorder and Voter Decision-Making in the Digital Era, with particular attention to social media users in Port Harcourt City Local Government Area, Rivers State.

The study will cover electoral information disorder encountered through social media platforms, including misinformation, disinformation, manipulated photographs and videos, false electoral claims, misleading political narratives and fabricated information concerning candidates, parties and electoral institutions.

The dependent variable is voter decision-making, while the independent variable is electoral information disorder. Voter decision-making will be examined in relation to perceptions of candidates and parties, evaluation of political claims, candidate preference and voting-related decisions.

Geographically, the study is limited to Port Harcourt City Local Government Area and does not seek to generalise automatically to all Local Government Areas in Rivers State or Nigeria. The study will focus on eligible voters who use social media and are resident within the study area.

1.8 Operational Definition of Terms

Electoral Information Disorder: The presence and circulation of false, misleading, manipulated or deliberately deceptive information relating to elections, candidates, political parties, electoral procedures or electoral outcomes.

Misinformation: False or inaccurate information that is shared without necessarily having the intention to deceive or cause harm.

Disinformation: False or deliberately manipulated information created or distributed with the intention of misleading people or causing harm.

Mal-information: Genuine information that is deliberately presented, contextualised or used in a harmful or misleading manner.

Electoral Information: Information relating to candidates, political parties, electoral procedures, campaigns, voting, electoral institutions, election results and other matters connected with elections.

Voter Decision-Making: The process through which eligible voters receive, evaluate and interpret political information before arriving at decisions concerning political candidates, parties and voting behaviour.

Social Media: Internet-based platforms that allow users to create, share, comment on and interact with digital content, including Facebook, WhatsApp, X, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube.

Social Media User: A person who regularly accesses or uses one or more social media platforms for communication, information, entertainment, political engagement or other purposes.

Electoral Disinformation Campaign: A coordinated or deliberate effort to produce and circulate misleading or false electoral information in order to influence public opinion, political behaviour or electoral outcomes.

Digital Era: The contemporary period characterised by extensive use of internet-based technologies, smartphones, social media and digital communication systems.

Voter Perception: The opinions, beliefs and evaluations that voters form about candidates, political parties, electoral institutions and electoral issues.

Fact-Checking: The systematic process of examining political or electoral claims against reliable evidence in order to determine their accuracy.

Media and Information Literacy: The knowledge and skills required to access, evaluate, interpret, verify, use and communicate information responsibly.

Project – Electoral Information Disorder and Voter Decision-Making in the Digital Era: A Study of Social Media Users in Port Harcourt City Local Government Area, Rivers State.