Impact Of Social Media On Youth Political Participation In Electoral Processes: A Comparative Study Of Nigeria And Kenya

Against the backdrop of the digital era, the role of social media and its influence on electoral processes, notably in terms of voter perceptions, political behaviour, and social mobilisations is an evolving discourse. In Africa and the Global South generally, accelerated use of social media is changing the political landscape, both positively and negatively. Social media has been used by marginalised voices to raise issues of concern within the society, mobilise youth groups, and hold political leaders accountable for their campaign promises.

On the other hand, social media has also been utilised as a divisive tool by political leaders to spread disinformation or fake news about their opposing parties, often escalating tension and exacerbating the risk of electoral violence.

The use of social media has been associated with youth as it is widely used and consumed by young people worldwide, shaping their perceptions, behaviours, and communication. In Africa, where half of the population is under the age of 18, internet users have doubled within five years. In this context, the youth bulge theory, a concept that equates the rising youth population as volatile with a high risk of violence, is highly prevalent.

The Youth Cafe has been part of an online event, Democracy In East Africa In The Wake Of The Coronavirus Pandemic: Challenges And Opportunities. Our main focus was on: The next generation and Youth inclusion in politics. Governments and policymakers in East Africa are reluctant to include youth in the formal political systems. What future do the youths want and how can they increase their participation in politics?

Regarding the youth population in Nigeria and Kenya, this perception of violent youth has been linked to the lack of socio-economic opportunities, youth unemployment and poverty, and underlying ethnoreligious conflicts. In both countries, there is a common overarching theme of mistrust in the central government, corruption, and the prevalence of fake news, undermining democracy, and the rule of law.

This research aims to address the extent to which social media is influencing youth political participation during electoral processes. To do so, we divided the research into three parts:

• Youth, Social Media, and Politics 

• Youth, Fake News, and Electoral Violence

• Disinformation, Democracy and Youth Engagement in the Electoral Processes  

For the purpose of this research, youth is defined as persons between the ages of 18 to 35 years old, taking into account both Nigeria and Kenya’s youth ranges. Our scope of analysis was limited to three social media platforms - WhatsApp, Twitter, and Facebook as these digital applications were identified to be most used among youths in the two countries. We conducted google form survey, from which we gathered 175 survey responses and conducted in-depth interviews with 10 professionals (4 experts from Kenya and 6 experts from Nigeria).

Our findings from the survey responses and in-depth interviews strengthened some pre-existing notions of youth in the political sphere but it also highlighted the ambiguity of social media’s impact. Some of our findings are as follows:

• The scope of youth was much broader than anticipated, with many identifying anyone  under the age of 60 as a youth,

• Social media is influential, and its usage has increased but this trend does not necessarily correlate with the actual voting patterns and behaviour. In other words, online activities  do not translate into votes during the elections,

• Based on our surveys, many were not satisfied with their country’s elections and therefore chose not to participate in the voting process. The respondents blamed their  lack of enthusiasm on factors such as lack of transparency, corruption, failed economy,  and the poor electoral infrastructure, and

• Lack of young and female representatives in the leadership positions in the political sphere.

With these findings in mind, some of our recommendations are as follows:

• Ensuring the process of obtaining voter cards and casting votes is more efficient,  accessible and an easier process for those involved, by establishing new technologies.

• While youth and women are active participants, their demography is not always  reflected in the hierarchy of leadership positions, thus we need more youth and women  to be appointed in leadership position

• Regulate social media with independent fact checks to ensure that there are evidence-based facts and information online, decreasing the chances of spreading disinformation  or fake news, and

• Finally, media literacy training should be implemented to raise politically engaged and well-informed citizens.

The Youth Cafe aims to enable the effective and active engagement of many more young citizens in policy and democratic processes and accountability, through digital means. We aspire to develop or adapt a digital platform to enhance youth inclusion in accountability and public policy, linking a foreign and an African city in this endeavour in a form of innovative twinning. Visit The Youth Cafe for more information.