On December 7, 2024, Ghanaians went to the polls for the ninth time under the Fourth Republic to select the next batch of leaders to govern the country.

Though 18.8 million voters were captured in the voter’s register, the polls witnessed a dramatic fall in turnout, with a significant number of voters opting not to partake in the voting.

Today is December 9, 2024, and there have been many activities marking the election period for Ghana.

GhanaWeb highlights the major events you might have missed.

Polls start at 7:00 AM on December 7

As expected, voting at most of the polling centres in the country commenced at exactly 7:00 AM, with some Ghanaians waking up to queue as early as 3:00 AM to vote.

GhanaWeb reported that some voters in the Yagaba Kubori constituency were up by 3:00 AM to exercise their civic responsibility.

Vandalization of polling materials, clashes, and arrests

Some constituencies in the country, including the Ansarudeen Islamic School, witnessed the destruction of ballot booths and electoral materials.

There were also reports of clashes between EC officials and party agents in the Okwakwei North Constituency, Asawase, Korle Klottey, among others.

Some military officials also clashed with voters in Obuase East and Weija.

Two die from shooting incidents

Two people died from voting-related issues due to gunshots at the Tolon Constituency and the Gomoa East Constituency.

The police subsequently arrested some persons and continue investigations.

Polls closed

Polls closed at most voting centres in the country by 5:00 PM on Saturday, December 7, 2024. While a few constituencies had their polls extending beyond the deadline, most polling centres closed with counting and collation being done.



Violence rocks collation centers

Across the country, there were widespread violences and clashes at most collation centre, as opposing parties clashed with security and EC officials.

At the Okwakwei North Collation Centre, security officials had to use tear gas and pepper spray to ward off the crowd.

There were attacks at the Dome-Kwabenya, Ayawaso West, Ablekuma North, Tarkwa-Nsuaem, Tema Central, Fanteakwa North, among others.

The violence extended to December 8, with the Damongo Constituency and Tamale, where angry youth attacked the police station.

Press conferences

Amid the melees at the collation centre, the political parties held press conferences defending their interests, while urging their supporters to stay vigilant.

The EC held a press conference to update Ghanaians on the process so far and said they were waiting for the results to come in before they announce them.

The Ghana Police Service also held press conferences to announce arrests and security measures.

Bawumia’s concession speech

In the early hours of Sunday, December 8, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia held a press conference where he announced that he had conceded defeat to John Mahama of the NDC.

Bawumia assured that he would support John Mahama through the transition process and also thanked his team.



Mahama’s tweet

Following Bawumia’s acceptance speech, John Mahama sent a tweet, revealing that he received a call from the defeated NPP presidential candidate.

Wild jubilations on the streets of Accra

The concession by Bawumia and subsequent acknowledgement spurred a wave of celebrations across the country.

The streets of Accra, Kumasi, Tarkwa, Tamale, and others were filled with people who were just sharing in the joy of the NDC victory.

Sammy Gyamfi storms churches

Sammy Gyamfi, the National Communications Officer of the NDC, visited some churches, including Reverend Owusu-Bempah's church, to express gratitude to him and other pastors for their role in Mahama’s yet-to-be-officialized victory.

NDC demands announcement of election result

The National Chairman of the National Democratic Congress held a press conference on the afternoon of Sunday, calling on the EC to announce the results.

Asiedu Nketiah also appealed to the National Peace Council and the diplomatic community to call the EC chair to order.

EC chair holds press conference

Jean Mensa, the Chairperson of the EC, held a press conference announcing that the commission had, at the time of the presser, received collated results from only one region.

Jean Mensa appealed for patience and assured that the results would be announced once the EC has them.

Provisional results from media houses

While this is ongoing, media houses are producing provisional results with the NDC commanding an unprecedented victory in the parliamentary elections.

All signs point to the party winning at least two-thirds of seats in the ninth Parliament.



EK/AE