Presidential elections were held in Nigeria on 12 June 1993, the first since the 1983 military coup ended the country's Second Republic. The elections were the outcome of a transitional process to civilian rule spearheaded by the military ruler, Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida. The unofficial result of the election – though not declared by the National Electoral Commission (NEC) – indicated a victory for Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), who defeated Bashir Tofa of the National Republican Convention (NRC).[1][2] The winner of the election was thus never declared as the elections were annulled by Babangida, citing electoral irregularities.[3][4] The annulment led to protests and political unrest, including the resignation of Babangida and a weak interim civilian government, and culminated in the continuation of military rule in the country with Sani Abacha ascending to power as the military head of state via a bloodless coup later in the year.[5]
^News from Africa Watch (27 August 1993). "Nigeria, Democracy Derailed: Hundreds Arrested and Press Muzzled in Aftermath of Election Annulment". Human Rights Watch. 5 (11): 1–21.
^Welch, Claude E. (1 July 1995). "Civil-Military Agonies in Nigeria: Pains of an Unaccomplished Transition". Armed Forces & Society. 21 (4): 593–614. doi:10.1177/0095327X9502100405. S2CID146316411.
^Ogbeidi, Michael M. (2010). "A Culture of Failed Elections: Revisiting Democratic Elections in Nigeria, 1959-2003". Historia Actual Online. 21: 43–56.
^Campbell, Ian (1994). "Nigeria's Failed Transition: The 1993 Presidential Election". Journal of Contemporary African Studies. 12 (2): 179–199. doi:10.1080/02589009408729556.
Nigeria portal