Despite governments' attempts to present a democratic front, the evident corruption and fraud involved in recent years' presidential elections in Russia, in Iran and Nigeria reveal the reality of the situations. Looking at the electoral processes of these three countries, it is clear that the electorate is not independent of the ruling party. Bad electoral processes degenerated into a legitimacy crisis in Nigeria and full-blown riots in Russia and Iran; Although authorities have successfully suppressed these public protests, the legitimacy of governments continues to be questioned. The public outcry over the results shows that the elections did not accurately reflect voters' intentions and that there was widespread fraud in which the number of votes for the winning candidate was significantly increased. Furthermore, the cycle of fraudulent elections in these countries has created a lack of social capital and has significantly hampered the pace of democratization within each of the states. Nigeria has a long history of corruption and violence that taints the process of electing the country's leaders. Assassinations, voter intimidation, and ballot tampering have all been common factors in past elections; rather than focusing on the pressing issues facing Nigerians, the elections were focused on the acquisition of power. The 2007 elections "marked the first time in [Nigeria's] post-independence history...that one civilian government ceded power to another", and what should have been a milestone for democracy was instead “riddled with corruption and embezzlement”. What could have been a break in the long chain of violence and corruption involved in the electoral process, middle of paper...... (2012): 1-11.Alexanian, Janet A. “Eyewitnesses and Claims politics: transnational responses to the 2009 post-election protests in Iran. Comparative Studies of South Asia, Africa, and the Middle East 31, no. 2 (2011): 425-427. Down, Reza. “A historic moment in Iran.” Human Rights Quarterly 31 (2009): 843-854. Giddy, Clifford and Andrew Kuchins. “Putin’s plan.” The Washington Quarterly 31, no. 2 (2008): 117-127. Lewis, Peter M. “Votes in Nigeria: More Openness, More Conflict.” » Journal of Democracy 22, no. 4 (2011): 60-74. Nichols, Jim. “Russian presidential election of March 2012: results and implications. » Congressional Research Service (2012): 1-11. Powell, Bingham G. et al., Comparative Politics Today: A World View, New York: Longman, 2009. Subaru, Rotimi T. “Nigeria's Muddled Elections.” Journal of Democracy 18, no. 4 (2007): 95-104.