Ghana is holding partial legislative elections in the pivotal constituency of Assin North this Tuesday, June 27th. The constituency could tip the scales on the side of the government in the National Assembly, as it used to be a stronghold of the opposition of the NDC party.
In recent days, some 40,000 voters in this region have seen the arrival of President Nana Akufo Addo, his vice-president Mahamudu Bawumia, tipped to succeed him, and John Dramani Mahama, the opposition candidate. For Ben Epheson, editor of the Daily Dispatch newspaper, and author of several books on the elections in Ghana, this election is also an electoral test for the presidential election of 2024.
If the NPP wins this seat, it will give it a margin of maneuver of two additional seats. If the NDC retains the seat, that means nothing changes.
Putting aside these calculations, this election will allow the winning party to boast better during the presidential election of 2024. Nana Akufo-Ado does not represent himself, John Mahama, returns to him.
The main opposition candidate took a huge risk by announcing that the results of this by-election will reflect the performance of the ruling party, the NPP.
If the NPP wins, will John Mahama be able to criticize the NPP again? If the NDC wins, John Mahama can boast that it was a reflection of the poor score. The main challenge of this campaign is therefore to see who will have political capital for 2024.
After two four-year terms, President Nana Akufo-Addo is due to step down in 2024, as constitutionally mandated, as Ghana faces one of the worst economic crises it has seen in decades.