General elections were held in Nigeria on 23 February 2019 to elect the President, Vice President, House of Representatives and the Senate.INEC fixes date for 2019 presidential election The Guardian, 9 March 2017INEC announces dates for 2019 general elections Premium Times, 9 March 2017 The elections had initially been scheduled for 16 February 2019, but the Electoral Commission postponed the vote by a week at 03:00 on the original polling day, citing logistical challenges in getting electoral materials to polling stations on time. In some places, the vote was delayed until 24 February 2019 due to electoral violence. Polling in some areas was subsequently delayed until 9 March, when voting was carried out alongside gubernatorial and state assembly elections.

The elections were the most expensive ever held in Nigeria, costing ₦69 billion (US$625 million) more than the 2015 elections.

Incumbent president Muhammadu Buhari won his re-election bid, defeating his closest rival Atiku Abubakar by over 3 million votes. He was issued a Certificate of Return, and was sworn in on 29 May 2019, the former date of Democracy Day.

Electoral system The President of Nigeria is elected using a modified two-round system, to be elected in the first round, a candidate must receive a majority of the vote and over 25% of the vote in at least 24 of the 36 states. If no candidate passes this threshold, a second round is held.Federal Republic of Nigeria: Election for President IFES

The 109 members of the Senate were elected from 109 single-seat constituencies (three in each state and one for the Federal Capital Territory) by first-past-the-post voting.About the Senate National Assembly The 360 members of the House of Representatives were also elected by first-past-the-post voting in single-member constituencies.Electoral system IPU

Voting process On 10th January 2019, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) published a seven-step voting procedure to guide voters on election day. Under the process, a voter first joined the queue at their designated polling unit, where an assistant presiding officer verified that the permanent voter card (PVC) matched the correct polling unit and confirmed the photograph against the voter's face. A second official then verified the PVC's authenticity using a Smart Card Reader, The voter then confirmed ownership by placing a finger on the device to verify it against the biometric data stored on the card.

Once accreditation was confirmed, the voter received a ballot paper from the presiding officer, And proceeded to a voting cubicle to thumbprint the box corresponding to their preferred candidate or party in secret. Indelible ink was applied to the voter's finger to prevent multiple voting, after which the voter folded the ballot paper as instructed and deposited it into the transparent ballot box in full view of those present at the polling unit to safeguard transparency.

Voters could then either leave the polling unit or remain to observe the count, which took place publicly immediately after voting closed, with results pasted at the polling unit for public viewing before transmission to collation centres. INEC combined the accreditation and voting stages into a single continuous process for the 2019 elections, a departure from the separate accreditation and voting windows used in 2015, intended to reduce the time voters spent at polling units and to curb the risk of politically motivated disruption between the two stages.

Presidential candidates

Party primaries

PDP The People's Democratic Party held its presidential primaries on 5 October 2018, at the Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium, Port Harcourt, Rivers State. Thirteen aspirants contested for the ticket of the PDP, with Atiku Abubakar emerging the winner.

CandidateVotes%Atiku Abubakar1,53248.6Aminu Tambuwal69322.0Bukola Saraki31710.1Rabiu Kwankwaso 1585.0Ibrahim Dankwambo1113.5Sule Lamido963.0Ahmed Makarfi 742.3Tanimu Turaki652.1Attahiru Bafarawa481.5David Mark 351.1Jonah Jang190.6Datti Ahmed 50.1Total3,153100Source: The Punch

APC Though some party members aspired for the party's nomination, notably Dr. SKC Ogbonnia, Chief Charles Udeogaranya, and Alhaji Mumakai-Unagha, the incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari was selected as the sole candidate of the All Progressives Congress party primaries held on 29 September 2018 amidst charges of imposition.

Other candidates

Chike Ukaegbu, founder of Startup52, is the presidential candidate of AAP.35-year-old declares to take Buhari's job in 2019 Pulse.ng Donald Duke, a former governor of Cross River State, is the presidential candidate of the SDP.I will run for Presidency - Ex-Cross River governor, Donald Duke Daily Post Fela Durotoye, motivational speaker and presidential candidate of Alliance for New Nigeria.2019 Presidency: Is Fela Durotoye overreaching himself? Vanguard, 3 March 2018 Oby Ezekwesili, former Minister of Education and leader of the Bring Back Our Girls campaign.Nigeria election: Oby Ezekwesili to stand for president BBC News, 8 October 2018 She ended her campaign on January 24, 2019 to combine support with other candidates to support a bid against APC and PDP. Tope Fasua, founder and National Chairman of the Abundant Nigeria Renewal Party.22 Other Nigerians Eyeing Buhari's Job Premium Times, 6 March 2018 Rabiu Kwankwaso, former governor of Kano State.2019: Kwankwaso flags off presidential campaign in Anambra Daily Post Sule Lamido, a former governor of Jigawa State.2019: Lamido declares presidential ambition Vanguard Ahmed Makarfi, former chairman of the People's Democratic Party National Caretaker Committee. Obadiah Mailafia, former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria and candidate of the African Democratic Congress. Kingsley Moghalu, former Deputy Governor of the CBN and Professor of Practice at Tufts University's Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy.Ex-CBN Deputy Governor, Moghalu Declares Presidential Bid Thisday Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim, oil business mogul and presidential candidate for the Peoples Trust. Remi Sonaiya, member of the KOWA Party and former university lecturer.I'll contest for president in 2019, says Sonaiya Punch Omoyele Sowore, human rights activist, pro-democracy campaigner and publisher of news website Sahara Reporters.How I will defeat Buhari in 2019 — Omoyele Sowore Premium Times Kabiru Tanimu Turaki, former Minister of Special Duties.

Presidential debates A presidential and vice-presidential debate was organised by the Nigerian Elections Debate Group (NEDG) and the Broadcasting Organisations of Nigeria (BON), with invitations extended to five of the 78 presidential candidates. The Debate Group explained the exclusion of other candidates as a measure to ensure the effectiveness of the debate and not an endorsement of the candidates chosen.

The vice presidential debate was held on 14 December 2018, at the Transcorp Hilton Hotels in Abuja. All invited vice presidential candidates were present, with candidates discussing health, education, security, economy and foreign affairs policies plans.

The presidential debate occurred on 19 January 2019, and took place at the same venue. The two leading presidential contestants were absent, with Atiku Abubakar leaving the venue upon discovering that Muhammadu Buhari was absent. Fela Durotoye (ANN), Oby Ezekwesili (ACPN) and Kingsley Moghalu (YPN) continued the debate, while criticising the absence of the others. Mark Eddo moderated the debate.

Opinion polls

Poll sourceDate Sample sizeAbubakarBuhariOthersNotesSeamfix 9 November 2018 – 4 January 2019 2,44048% 25% 31%NigeriaVotes 19 November 2018 – 26 February 2019 11,326 32%42% 26%

Conduct Immediately following the elections, there were claims of widespread fraud by the opposition. The claims included accusations of ballot box snatching, vote-trading and impersonation. There were also claims that caches of explosives were found by police. PDP candidate Atiku Abubakar filed a case at the Nigerian electoral tribunal citing widespread irregularities in the polls . However the court dismissed his case, saying that Atiku has failed to prove widespread fraud committed by the electoral team of Buhari. The court also dismissed an allegation which said that Buhari lied about his academic background.

The African Union said the elections were "largely peaceful and conducive for the conducting of credible elections." The electoral commission also described the elections as mostly peaceful. On the contrary, US-based organisation Freedom House severely criticised the conduct, saying that they were marred by irregularities and intimidation.

Misinformation During the general election, reports indicated that both major political parties utilized their campaign headquarters to coordinate disinformation campaigns.

A highly viral video claimed that President Muhammadu Buhari had died and was replaced by a Sudanese body double, forcing a public denial.

In addition to national broadcast, Campaign teams shared out of context images such as claiming infrastructure projects in Rwanda were Nigerian public works and circulated digitally altered photos of foreign leaders to manufacture false political endorsements.

Results President The results of the presidential election were announced in the early hours of 27 February 2019.

By geopolitical zone Geopolitical zone Muhammadu BuhariAPC Atiku AbubakarPDP Felix NicolasPCP Obadiah MailafiaADC Gbor TerwaseAAC Others Margin Total valid votes Votes % Votes % Votes % Votes % Votes % Votes % Votes % North Central 2,465,599 53.59% 7 2,023,769 43.98% 7 19,028 0.41% 7,142 0.16% 7,316 0.16% 78,269 1.70% 441,830 9.60% 4,601,123 North East 3,238,783 70.68% 6 1,255,357 27.40% 2 11,444 0.25% 5,207 0.11% 1,916 0.04% 69,365 1.51% 1,983,426 43.29% 4,582,072 North West 5,995,651 71.18% 7 2,280,465 27.07% 3 17,953 0.21% 2,449 0.03% 3,048 0.04% 123,823 1.47% 3,715,186 44.11% 8,423,389 South East 403,968 18.19% 3 1,693,485 76.26% 5 14,720 0.66% 1,665 0.07% 52,392 2.36% 54,526 2.46% −1,289,517 −58.07% 2,220,756 South South 1,051,396 31.34% 5 2,233,232 66.56% 6 14,752 0.44% 4,156 0.12% 1,059 0.03% 50,486 1.50% −1,181,836 −35.23% 3,355,081 South West 1,051,397 49.16% 6 1,776,670 42.89% 6 29,389 0.71% 77,255 1.87% 1,120 0.03% 221,278 5.34% 259,780 6.27% 4,142,162 Total 15,191,847 55.60% 34 11,262,978 41.22% 29 107,286 0.39% 97,874 0.36% 66,851 0.24% 597,747 2.19% 3,928,869 14.38% 27,324,583

By state