This paper examined the correlation between media framing of political campaigns and citizens' mobilisation for 2023 elections in Akwa Ibom State of Nigeria. The objectives the study included: finding out the extent to which citizens were exposed to political campaigns in the media during the 2023 elections in Akwa Ibom State of Nigeria; the extent to which citizens recognised major media frames of the political campaigns in the 2023 elections in Akwa Ibom State of Nigeria; what media frames of the political campaigns appeal to the citizens most in the 2023 elections in Akwa Ibom State of Nigeria and to ascertain whether media frames of the political campaigns in the 2023 elections did influence the voting behaviour of the citizens in Akwa Ibom State of Nigeria. The study adopted the survey research design where 400 respondents were drawn as sample size from the population of 7, 200, 000 being the 2023 projected population of Akwa Ibom State from the 2006 National Population Commission figure. Findings from the study revealed that exposure of citizens to political campaigns in the media during the 2023 general elections in Akwa Ibom State was very high (83%). The media frames of the political campaigns of Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 elections appealed most to the citizens of Akwa Ibom State scoring 82% on weighted mean scale. The study then concluded that media frames of political campaigns do have influence on voting behaviour of citizens during elections. It recommended that given the influence of media frames on citizens' understanding and interpretations of political campaigns, media framing of political parties and their programmes should be based on verifiable facts and feasibility of the political agenda.
Vol. 4, No 1, pp. 41-50.