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Yiaga Africa, the ECOWAS Network of Electoral Commissions (ECONEC) and international development partners have warned that the growing misuse of artificial intelligence (AI) could undermine Nigeria’s 2027 general elections through disinformation, deepfakes, voter manipulation and the spread of false election results.
The stakeholders, who spoke at the AI and Democracy Forum 2026 in Abuja, called for urgent safeguards, stronger digital literacy, transparent political communication and regional cooperation to prevent emerging technologies from eroding public confidence in elections.
They warned that although AI could improve access to information, civic participation and election administration, its unchecked use could manipulate public opinion, distort political debate and weaken democratic institutions.
Executive Director of Yiaga Africa, Samson Itodo, said the warning was particularly significant given the growing distrust surrounding Nigeria’s electoral process and lingering controversies over the deployment of technology during the 2023 general elections.
He said a recent national voting-intention survey by the organisation showed that Nigerians remained doubtful about the credibility of the electoral process and whether their votes would count in 2027.
“The climate of distrust in the electoral process is palpable and you can feel it,” Itodo said.
He argued that restoring confidence in elections required more than the deployment of technology, stressing that the integrity of the people managing electoral systems was equally important.
“It is one thing to deploy technology; it is another thing for the personal integrity of those managing those technologies to deliver,” he said.
According to him, compromised individuals operating AI-powered systems could undermine the credibility of their outputs, regardless of the sophistication of the technology.
Itodo also addressed the emergence of AI-powered platforms designed to aggregate election results, insisting that while independent organisations could monitor and aggregate results for transparency, only the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had the legal authority to declare election results and winners.
He urged organisations involved in results aggregation to ensure that their data were accurate, their methodologies transparent and their systems open to independent auditing.
He said inaccurate results data could fuel political instability, while transparency in election management would help improve public acceptance of electoral outcomes.
Chairman of Senegal’s Electoral Commission and head of ECONEC, Abdoulaye Sylla, said the challenge facing West African democracies was no longer whether AI would influence elections, but how to ensure that its use strengthened rather than weakened electoral integrity.
Sylla identified disinformation, deepfakes, algorithmic bias, data privacy violations, cyber threats and voter manipulation as some of the risks electoral institutions must prepare to confront.
He disclosed that ECONEC was developing guidelines on the use of AI in elections across West Africa to promote responsible adoption, protect voters’ rights and ensure that electoral decisions remained subject to human oversight.
He said the guidelines would provide electoral management bodies with a common framework of principles, standards and practical safeguards for managing emerging technologies.
Sylla also called for greater cooperation among electoral commissions, warning that digitally manipulated content and other technology-driven threats could affect several countries simultaneously.
“The credibility of our elections in the years ahead will depend not only on the sophistication of the technologies we deploy, but also on the integrity of the institutions that govern them and the trust of the citizens they serve,” he said.
He assured Nigeria of ECONEC’s support through regional cooperation, peer learning and the exchange of experiences as the country prepares for the 2027 polls.
The European Union also warned that AI-generated disinformation and deepfakes could undermine citizens’ ability to make informed electoral choices.
Vittorio Capici, Programme Officer for Regional Peace and Security at the EU Delegation to Nigeria, said AI offered opportunities to improve access to information, support civic participation and strengthen electoral processes, but its misuse could manipulate public debate and weaken trust in electoral institutions.
He said the EU, alongside the German and Danish governments, was supporting the €29 million Support to ECOWAS in Peace, Security and Governance programme, which seeks to strengthen democratic governance, electoral institutions and peaceful electoral processes across West Africa.
Capici stressed that addressing AI-related electoral risks required coordinated action by governments, electoral bodies, civil society organisations, technology companies and development partners.
“Democracy has always had to adapt to technological change. And what really matters is that innovation does not come at the expense of democratic principles, public trust and the rights of citizens,” he said.
Similarly, the British High Commission said it was working with INEC through the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) to develop a regulatory and governance framework for AI in election administration ahead of the 2027 elections.
Its representative, Matthew Ayibakuro, described the intersection of AI and democracy as one of the defining challenges of the present time, given the opportunities the technology offers and the risks it poses to democratic processes.
He said the UK-supported initiative was part of broader efforts to ensure that electoral technology strengthened Nigeria’s democracy rather than created new vulnerabilities.
Ayibakuro expressed hope that the forum would produce a collaborative framework through which stakeholders could address AI-related challenges and agree on practical safeguards for elections.
Director for Democratic Futures in Africa at the Open Society Foundations, Chukwuemeka Eze, said the debate over AI extended beyond technology to the future of political power, citizen participation and accountability.
He said AI could expand civic space, improve civic education, strengthen government accountability and create opportunities for young people to participate in democratic processes.
However, he warned that the technology could also spread disinformation, generate deepfakes, manipulate public opinion and deepen existing inequalities, particularly between urban and rural communities.
Eze urged African countries to move beyond being consumers of technological systems developed elsewhere and become active participants in shaping how AI was designed, governed and deployed.
He identified the protection of citizens’ rights, the integrity of democratic processes and investment in Africa’s technological capacity as critical priorities.
He also called for stronger digital literacy, responsible journalism, transparent political communication and effective safeguards against AI-enabled electoral manipulation.
“The question is whether we will shape AI in ways that strengthen democracy,” he said.
Meanwhile, Tari Wills, an associate at Luminate, a global philanthropic organisation working at the intersection of technology, human rights and social justice, said technology should serve people rather than harm them.
Wills expressed hope that the forum would generate a chain reaction across government and non-governmental institutions, encouraging stakeholders to harness technology for the benefit of Nigerians.
The AI and Democracy Forum 2026 brought together electoral officials, civil society organisations, diplomatic representatives, technology companies and development partners to examine the implications of artificial intelligence for Nigeria’s 2027 general elections.
