Nigerians head to the polls to elect new president


Millions headed to the polls on Saturday to vote in Nigeria's presidential and parliamentary election, which could have ripple effects across the country and the African continent.
Nigerians will look to change their nation's fortunes with a new government after the current leader, President Muhammadu Buhari, announced he would step down after serving two terms. Despite having the largest economy in Africa, per Statista, Nigeria has been fraught with financial hardships and rising levels of violence under Buhari's tenure.
Nigeria "is struggling with Islamist insurgencies in the northeast, an epidemic of kidnappings for ransom, conflict between herders and farmers, shortages of cash, fuel, and power, as well as deep-rooted corruption and poverty," per Reuters. An additional poll cited by The New York Times found that 89 percent of Nigerians felt their country was going in the wrong direction.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The two main candidates to succeed Buhari are Bola Tinubu from Nigeria's ruling All Progressives Congress, and Atiku Abubakar from the opposition People's Democratic Party. However, this year's election has another major contender, Peter Obi, a third-party candidate from the Labor Party.
The Times noted that Obi was leading in numerous polls heading into the election. His victory would be considered a major upset, NPR added. However, there are also a large number of undeclared voters, which could swing the election back toward one of the major party candidates.
Election day got off to a rocky start. While polls were scheduled to open across the country at 8:30 a.m. local time, many had delayed starts. Nigerian newspaper The Punch reported this was due to "insecurity in some states [that] led to delays as well as logistics issues."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Justin Klawans has worked as a staff writer at The Week since 2022. He began his career covering local news before joining Newsweek as a breaking news reporter, where he wrote about politics, national and global affairs, business, crime, sports, film, television and other news. Justin has also freelanced for outlets including Collider and United Press International.
-
September 14 editorial cartoons
Cartoons Sunday’s political cartoons include RFK Jr on the hook, the destruction of discourse, and more
-
Air strikes in the Caribbean: Trump’s murky narco-war
Talking Point Drug cartels ‘don’t follow Marquess of Queensberry Rules’, but US military air strikes on speedboats rely on strained interpretation of ‘invasion’
-
A tour of Sri Lanka’s beautiful north
The Week Recommends ‘Less frenetic’ than the south, this region is full of beautiful wildlife, historical sites and resorts
-
Brazil’s Bolsonaro sentenced to 27 years for coup attempt
Speed Read Bolsonaro was convicted of attempting to stay in power following his 2022 election loss
-
House posts lewd Epstein note attributed to Trump
Speed Read The estate of Jeffrey Epstein turned over the infamous 2003 birthday note from President Donald Trump
-
Supreme Court allows 'roving' race-tied ICE raids
Speed Read The court paused a federal judge's order barring agents from detaining suspected undocumented immigrants in LA based on race
-
Burkina Faso's misinformation war
Under The Radar The president of the West African country has quickly become the face of a viral, AI-powered propaganda campaign
-
Voting: Trump's ominous war on mail ballots
Feature Donald Trump wants to sign an executive order banning mail-in ballots for the 2026 midterms
-
South Korea to fetch workers detained in Georgia raid
Speed Read More than 300 South Korean workers detained in an immigration raid at a Hyundai plant will be released
-
DC sues Trump to end Guard 'occupation'
Speed Read D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb argues that the unsolicited military presence violates the law
-
RFK Jr. faces bipartisan heat in Senate hearing
Speed Read The health secretary defended his leadership amid CDC turmoil and deflected questions about the restricted availability of vaccines