The Central Region undoubtedly has proven to be one of the most deciding regions in terms of political parties winning an election in Ghana, particularly under the Fourth Republic.
The region played a significant role in the victory of the late Jerry John Rawlings, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) candidate, in the inaugural 1992 elections as well as his re-election in 1996.
In the 2000 elections, the Central Region showed a shift in favour of John Agyekum Kufuor of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) who won the presidency. The region continued to lean towards the New Patriotic Party, contributing to Former President Kufuor’s re-election in 2004.
The 2008 elections saw a return of the National Democratic to power with John Atta Mills as the president and here too the Central Region contributed significantly to the party’s victory. The region again remained a competitive battleground in 2012, and the National Democratic Congress under Former President John Mahama, maintained considerable support in the region and won the election.
Moreover, in 2016, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo of the New Patriotic Party won the presidency with the Central Region playing a pivotal role in the party’s victory while the region continued to give the party significant support in its re-election bid in the 2020 general election.
From the above, it is therefore reasonable for a political party that seeks to win an election to show concern about how it could maximize its gains in such a region to win a major election in the country.
The opposition National Democratic Congress has urged the people of the Central Region to take full control of the party and ultimately make the region the stronghold of the party especially due to the many high-ranking officers the party has produced in the region.
Speaking at a separate durbar as part of the party’s flagbearer’s Building Ghana Tour in the Central Region, the National Chairman of the party Johnson Asiedu Nketiah mentioned the significant roles that former leaders from the region like the late Vice President Kow Nkensen Arkaah and Paa Kwesi Amissah Arthur, the late President, Prof. John Evans Atta Mills, Prof. Jane Naana Opoku Agyemang, the former Education Minister, and the late Central Regional Minister Ama Benyiwa Doe previously played in the party and called on the region to change its voting pattern ahead of the 2024 general elections.
“Election 2024 is very critical in the country’s history with greater emphasis on a leader who will be the preference of the majority of Ghanaians and not just a leader of a political party. It had become clear that Ghana needed a new precedent, which required the election of a new leader, who would leverage his credibility with the people to lift the country to greater development heights”.
Johnson Asiedu Nketiah
Meanwhile, Professor Richard Kofi Asiedu the Central Regional Chairman of the National Democratic Congress has strongly argued that the rank and file of the party in the region is very committed to increasing the number of presidential and parliamentary votes cast in the region in the 2024 general elections.
According to him, its objective is to surpass the 45.9% of votes the National Democratic Congress received in the 2020 Presidential result to 60% and secure victory in at least 20 out of the 23 parliamentary seats in the 2024 general elections.
It is important to note that while the objective of the National Democratic Congress in the Central Region appears to be very laudable, it requires a very comprehensive strategy that addresses various aspects of political campaigning, messaging, and engagement to achieve such an ambitious target in the 2024 general elections.
