ABSTRACT
Why did a pool of PDP’s senior, highly trained professionals and technocrats lose to much younger DPT candidates? On the one hand, PDP was unable to fend off DPT’s charge of moral corruption and portrayal as an evil party. On the other hand, a series of strategic blunders and local issues worked against its candidates. PDP was perceived as a family project. One of the president’s brother was a candidate. The other was perceived to be the financier of the party. The fact that there were many candidates, members and supporters who were not at all related to the president did not appear to matter much to the electorate. Better pay and allowances paid to PDP coordinators, as well as lunches and beverages served during PDP’s public meetings in rural areas, had the effect of portraying PDP as a rich party. This image of a rich and alleged immorality of the party was further aggravated by series of scandals involving its candidates. Although DPT and PDP candidates were both involved in violations of electoral norms, those involving PDP candidates made headlines. Hence, the image of an evil party abstracted by DPT leaders in public sphere found public resonance in PDP.
