INTRODUCTION
One of the major features of democracy worldwide is the conduct of general elections. Every election no matter how imperfect, is at least a demonstration of a national effort to formally acknowledge before the world, the universal aspiration to democracy.
In this mid-year review, we examine the issues at stake in the 2024 general elections in Ghana, the potential threats and the roles of the key actors in the electoral process, as it unfolds towards December.
DATE OF ELECTION
The Electoral Commission, in January proposed a change in the date of the 2024 election from 7 December to 7 November. The EC explained that the change would give the Commission more time to organize a run-off of the presidential election and be able to declare the results on schedule, in case a winner does not emerge from the December 7 polls.
The proposal was however rejected by the opposition National Democratic Congress. The EC will therefore stick to the election date of 7 January, 2024.
BACKGROUND
Ghana’s President, Nana Akufo-Addo who has served two terms of office, is not eligible to run in the 2024 election. Since 1992, when the country returned to constitutional rule after years of military rule, Ghana has held competitive, multiparty elections and seen peaceful transfers of power between Ghana’s two main political parties, the NDC and NPP.
Ghana uses the two-round system in the presidential election whilst members of parliament are elected in constituencies by majority vote. In the case of the presidential election, the country uses the two-round system which is also known as the runoff, when none of the two leading candidates obtains a clear majority in the first round.
In May, 2023, the opposition NDC chose former president John Dramani Mahama as the party’s presidential candidate for the 2024 presidential election. In November, 2023, the NPP chose Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia as its candidate. Bawumia will be the New Patriotic Party’s first Muslim presidential candidate in a country with a predominantly Christian population.
Dr. Bawumia, is an economist with a passion for the employment of digital technology in Ghana’s economic and social development and progress; confident of victory in the presidential election, has pledged to use his expertise as a driving force for national economic growth. He has pledged to introduce new initiatives to hasten economic growth.
Former President John Dramani Mahama’s returns to the 2024 elections as the NDC’s presidential aspirant with his flagship campaign project being his vision of a 24-hour economy for Ghana to raise national productivity and create jobs for the mass of unemployed people. He has pledged a commitment to modernizing Ghana’s agriculture, promoting agro-processing and generally transforming Ghana’s economy into an export-led one.
Intelligence suggests that in this election, the Northern Ghana vote, including the vote of the Zongos [Northern Ghanaian communities in the South], will be near-equally split between both presidential candidates on account of both candidates being natives of the North.
THE STAKES
With six months to go to the 2024 national elections, the indications are that the elections will be highly competitive. The issues are many and the stakes quite high:
Ghana’s economy is struggling and the country’s debt burden is massive. Poverty levels in the country have risen steeply. Their perceptions of high official corruption. These could create a strong wave of anti-incumbency sentiments and result in the electorate seeking to change the government. Unbridled inflation and a progressive depreciation of the Ghana Cedi against most foreign currencies have also worked against the government.
The COVID-19 pandemic, disruptions in grain and other global supply networks due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine and insufficient monetary and fiscal discipline have all led to economic hardship for most Ghanaians. The resultant debt pile has required an emergency $3-billion IMF bailout.
The government also introduced a Domestic Debt Exchange Programme last year as part of a national debt restructuring exercise with a view to protecting the economy and enhancing the nation’s capacity to service its public debts. Many Ghanaians who purchased bonds lost a total of GHS80 as a result of the debt restructuring programme. The result has been severe financial hardship for many pensioners and middle-class families in the country.
THE KEY ACTORS
For this year’s election to be considered to have been free, fair, peaceful and credible, the Electoral Commission, the police and all involved in the election process must be neutral in the discharge of their duties. We shall examine the state of preparedness of the key actors:
THE ELECTORAL COMMISSION
Preparations by the Electoral Commission are in progress toward the conduct of the December elections include a planned submission of copies of the national voters’ register to the political parties between 9 and 18 July 2024. The EC is preparing to mount an exhibition of the voters register at strategic locations nationwide, between July 15 and 24, 2024.
The Commission has confirmed that the final voters register to be used on 7 December, will be submitted to political parties between August 30 and September 5, 2024.
Political parties are scheduled to present to the EC between 9 September and 13 September, names of candidates for this year’s presidential and parliamentary elections. Balloting for the placement of the portraits of presidential and parliamentary candidates on ballots papers will be held on 23 and 24 September respectively.
The Commission expects to declare the results of the 2024 presidential election within three days of the end of voting exercise.
At the time of this review, the EC had conducted a limited voter’s registration exercise nationwide from 7 May to 27 May, to replace missing voter ID cards with new cards and register eligible citizens who have turned 18.
The EC has plans to make it possible for members of the security agencies and other public officials who will be on duty on voting day to vote at selected polling stations on 2 December, 2024.
Engagement of Temporary EC for the 2024 Election
In May, the Electoral Commission began examining applications for temporary positions in the Commission in preparation for the elections in December. Those being recruited will work as registration officers, exhibition officers, presiding officers, registration assistants, exhibition assistants, and polling assistants.
Although those who will fill the positions will be given a three-month period of training, the use of temporary workers for general elections require rigorous supervision to ensure that the temporary staff are able to support the EC and the nation in conducting a free and fair election.
Although the appointment of individuals with political affiliations to positions within the Electoral Commission cannot be denied, these temporary workers and permanent staff as well, need to be prevailed upon to place the protection of Ghana’s democracy above partisan, political interests during the election process.
THE GHANA POLICE SERVICE
The Ghana Police Service has explained its strategy for a peaceful and credible election. Between now and December, the police will hold periodic meetings with the key stakeholders on the implementation of strategies for a peaceful election. It will also discuss with stakeholders, plans for the nation-wide, strategic deployment of personnel and equipment and the escort of election materials and officials.
The police administration has also announced plans to ensure maximum security for voters and polling staff at polling stations and collation centers. The police administration will also ensure the prompt deployment of rapid response teams and mobile police patrols whilst intensifying security intelligence gathering. The police will in addition, closely monitor all post-election activities in the country. A key aspect of the plan is the establishment of an election task force comprising all security agencies to ensure a unified approach to election security.
THE GHANA ARMED FORCES
Whilst the Ghana Armed Forces does not play a direct role in the provision of election security, it has always stood ready to provide essential support to the Ghana Police Service and other security agencies during elections. With only months to go to the election, the Armed Forces has assured the nation on various occasions that the military will collaborate with the other security agencies to ensure a peaceful election.
ELECTION OBSERVERS AND CIVIL SOCIETY
International election observers of the 2014 elections will tour electoral areas and compile accurate and impartial assessment of the election with focus on the degree to which the conduct of the elections meets international standards for democratic elections;
The work of foreign observers will be complemented by local civil society organizations. The active involvement of civil society organizations in the monitoring and reporting of the election process are expected to ensure the integrity of the elections
THE CHALLENGES:
Missing Biometric Voter Registration Kits
With six months to go to the 2014 elections, the issue of the integrity of the Biometric Voter Registration (BVR) kits to be used for the elections, has surfaced as a subject of contention: The verification device records both fingerprints as well as the facial features of each registered individual. This is to ensure that only persons whose biometric details are recorded on the devices are eligible to vote on polling day
When the kits were deployed in early May for use in the limited voters registration exercise in progress throughout the country, the NDC demanded that the Electoral Commission make available to the party a list of the serial numbers of the BVR kits. The limited registration exercise is to facilitate the registration of Ghanaians who turned 18 since the last election and to replace missing registration ID cards.
The NDC said BVR devices stolen from the Electoral Commission this year, could be used to illegally ineligible register voters for the 2024 elections. At a press conference in Accra the NDC said the party which found itself faced with an imminent threat of the use of a compromised voters register in this year’s election had taken the precaution of asking, all its registration center agents across the country to record the serial numbers of all BVR kits that the EC would deploy for the limited voter registration exercise.
The NDC said access to the serial numbers would enable the party to trace, identify, and match all registration data originating from a specific district or electoral area. Knowing the serial numbers of the BVR devices would also enable the NDC track EC officials who operate BVR kits in any electoral area, to prevent any illegal, clandestine registration of voters.
In rejecting the request to disclose the serial numbers of the BVR kits the EC has said doing so could lead to the use of the numbers to gain unauthorized access to the devices, and compromise the integrity of the voter registration. The EC said disclosing the serial numbers of the BVR kits could enable targeted attacks on specific BVR kits in parts of the country leading to operational challenges and conflict and possible violence.
The Commission has said the serial numbers could be used to facilitate fraudulent activities, such as phishing attacks, in which a criminal using the serial numbers could trick EC personnel into believing they are registration officials, potentially leading to unauthorized disclosures.
In defense of the Commission’s rejection of the NDC’s request for disclosure of the serial numbers if the BVR kits, the EC quoted Section 7, Subsection 1 (j) of the Right to Information Act, 2019 (Act 989), which states in part that “information is exempt from disclosure where the information contains matters which if disclosed can reasonably be expected to endanger a system including computer and communication systems for which security is reasonably required.”
The issue however remains a contentious one with the NDC’s insistence of a disclosure of the serial numbers by the EC and a potential subject of reference in any future litigation.
Disruptions in Internet Services
Disruptions in Internet services in Ghana at the end of the first quarter of this election year affected communications nationwide and raised public fears about the confusion and possible insecurity likely to result from any Internet-related hitches in the electoral process on voting day.
Amid the apprehensions over challenges with internet connectivity, The Electoral Commission has said the process for declaration of both presidential and parliamentary elections results is done manually and, therefore, any disruption in internet services will not affect the 2024 general election.
The EC has assured the nation that since the counting of ballots cast will be done by the EC officials without any Internet connection and the collation of results was done using a computer without Internet connectivity, there was no way the disruption in Internet service would affect the election.
Public fears that disruptions in internet services if they persist for the rest of the year could affect the conduct of the elections and EC’s assurance that the state of internet services will have no effect on the conduct of the elections comes at a time when the International Foundation for Electoral System is urging greater use of ICT in election management:
The Foundation says the use of technology in national elections touches almost every part of the election process, including voter and candidate registration, voter identification, voter education, voting, counting, results transmission and complaints management. Whilst pointing out the advantages in the use of different forms of technology in elections however, the Foundation warns of disadvantages which need to be managed.
This is particularly necessary in the case of the use of electronic systems to transmit election results as any actual or perceived misuse of technology can result in contested elections and provide an opening for political forces to cause mistrust and confusion leading to an erosion of public confidence in the integrity of elections.
As the limited voter registration exercise continued in the third week of May, the NDC announced its rejection of the EC’s proposal to undertake offline registration of voters if difficulties with registration online persist. The party insists that the Commission take the necessary measures to restore data connectivity to all registration centers, ensure prompt data verification in order to keep the process transparent.
Errors in voter registration figures
On the third day of the limited voter registration exercise in May, the Electoral Commission admitted errors it made in the figures it released as the numbers of eligible voters registered in across the country in the first three days of registration:
The Commission which reported that 143,014 eligible voters had been registered by the end of the fourth day of the exercise revised the figures explaining that a repetition of registration figures for the first three days if registration in the Upper East region had resulted in inaccuracies.
According to the EC, this admission underscores “its commitment to transparency and accuracy” in the voter registration process, ensuring that the public receives reliable information about the ongoing exercise.
The EC subsequently released new figures which show that the Greater Accra region has recorded 17,837 registered voters, followed by the North East with 3,948, the Upper East with 6,691, and the Northern region with 10,373. Other regions include Bono (4,900), Bono East (5,118), Volta (7,512), Upper West (5,256), Eastern (14,884), Central (15,434), Atafu (3,889), and Ashanti (25,558).
Also, registrations from other regions include 5,638 from Western North, 4,206 from Oti, 2,989 from Savannah, and 8,781 from the Western region.
To remove any mistrust or suspicions among the political parties it is necessary for the Commission to indicate in emphatic terms at subsequent meetings of the Inter-Party Advisory Committee that the errors initially made will in no way whatsoever affect the conduct and outcome of the elections in December.
The Dilemma of Social Media in Election 2024
Social media, once an online platform for entertainment, social and personal connection has become such an indispensable platform for election campaigning that its influence on the conduct and outcome of 2024 elections is obvious.
In this year’s election, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram are awash with textual and graphical campaign messages from candidates and political parties. It has however all been interactive and voters and the public are easily able to question wrong or false claims, information and assumptions in campaigning. Voters have been able to compel campaigning candidates to clarify or address particular issues.
Most influencers have a considerable online following and may be able to influence public opinion and some candidates are collaborating with them for the achievement of various campaign objectives. Some presidential candidates have publicly announced the alleged membership of some influencers on the campaign teams of some presidential candidates but the influencers have denied being members of the teams.
Although the positive impact social media is having on the 2024 election campaign is obvious, social media users and influencers in particular are not the most ethical when it comes to accuracy, authenticity and accountability in their conversation online. The potential threats in social media use during the 2024 election are likely to include false propaganda, online surveillance of opponents, hate communication and cyberattacks which all have the potential to deceive and confuse the public.
As the election campaign picks up greater steam in the next few months the public should be reminded of the need to refrain from relying on only single sources of information and to instead seek and contrast information from different sources about the progress of the election and political candidates and players.
The Use of Indelible Ink in 2024:
The Electoral Commission this year announced its decision to discontinue the practice of the use of indelible ink in the election process in Ghana. The EC said with the introduction of biometric verification in the election process, the use of indelible ink to mark the thumbs of citizens after they cast their votes was no longer necessary.
The use of indelible ink to mark the thumbs of voters after they have cast their votes has been a permanent feature of elections in Ghana and is considered an effective method of identifying persons who have cast votes in order to prevent multiple voting by any individuals. The announcement by the Commission was met with strong protests from political parties, political activists and civil society groups as well as Parliament
The leadership of Ghana’s Parliament was however of the view that in the event of the failure indelible ink on a voter’s thumb provided the most reliable way to identify a person who had already voted.
The leadership was also of the view that since the database of the EC at its national headquarters and those in the regions were not synchronized, discarding the indelible ink could enable abuse of the voting system through multiple voting.
In response to public agitation, the EC announced that in view of public concerns over the issue the Commission had rescinded its earlier decision, having reached the conclusion that the use of the indelible ink would increase public trust in the election process.
Conclusion
As Ghana approaches its 2024 general elections, the nation stands at a critical juncture with significant political, economic, and social challenges. The economy’s struggles, heightened by external shocks like the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine, have amplified public dissatisfaction and anti-incumbency sentiments. Both leading presidential candidates, John Dramani Mahama and Mahamudu Bawumia, offer distinct visions for addressing these issues, aiming to leverage technology and economic reforms to uplift the nation.
The Electoral Commission’s preparedness, despite setbacks like errors in voter registration figures and controversies over the use of biometric voter registration kits, is crucial for ensuring a credible election. The Ghana Police Service and Armed Forces have pledged their support to maintain peace and security, while international observers and civil society organizations are poised to monitor the process closely.
Key challenges, including internet service disruptions, social media’s dual role in disseminating information and misinformation, and debates over electoral practices like the use of indelible ink, highlight the complexities of conducting a fair election. Addressing these challenges transparently and effectively will be essential in maintaining public trust in the electoral process.
Ultimately, the success of the 2024 general elections in Ghana will depend on the collective efforts of the Electoral Commission, security agencies, political parties, civil society, and the electorate to uphold democratic principles. Ensuring a free, fair, and peaceful election will not only reflect Ghana’s commitment to democracy but also set a precedent for future electoral processes in the region.
