A professor at the University of Ghana, Professor Ransford Gyampo, has observed that the fate on which a president is elected to rule Ghana in the 2024 general election would be centered keenly on decisions by voters.
The esteemed professor opined that, unlike past presidential contests where a candidate’s popularity mostly determined the victor, that of 2024’s would be decided on different grounds.
After the election of Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia as flagbearer to lead the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), in the next general elections he will be competing with the National Democratic Congress (NDC) led by John Dramani Mahama, Independent Candidate Alan Kyeremanten among others.
Though many see the forthcoming presidential contest as a three-horse race between Dr Bawumia, John Mahama, and most particularly Mr. Kyerematen, some political science scholars and pollsters and a section of the general public believe the tie is a forgone conclusion for former President John Mahama.
Professor Ransford however has uttered different views indicating all presidential candidates have tremendous work to be done through their campaigns.
Speaking on the Angel Morning Show, Professor Gyampo said the 2024 contest will be crucially based on what he termed as “voters deep thinking” over “auto pilot.”
“For the first time in the history of the electoral politics of Ghana, people’s vote would not be on autopilot but they [voters] will do what we call deep thinking before exercising their franchise through voting,” he told Okatakyei Afrifa-Mensah on Thursday, November 9, 2023.
According to him, deep thinking will be devoid of previous instances when voters pre-decided who they were going to vote for before staging the ballot box to cast their balloting.
Professor Ransford Gyampo called such development a plus on the part of Ghanaians, adding, that the politic mischiefs of leaders are now previewed to the public.
“They will really think and think deep. You know, in the past, until one goes into the ballot to cast a vote, one had already taken a stance either they vote for the NPP, NDC, and whosoever advice you offered them will be in vain.”
“To this end, they won’t just go to cast their ballot but have a second thought before taking such step that would be a plus for Ghana’s Democracy and our quest to promote rational choice during an election,” he told Okatakyei Afrifa-Mensah.
