Election 2024: 10 key takeaways from the Electoral Commission's final briefing on election day  

The Electoral Commission of Ghana, led by Deputy Chairman for Operations, Samuel Tettey, delivered its final update on the 2024 General Election Day, highlighting significant developments and providing insights into the ongoing collation process. 

Below are 10 critical points to note:  

1. Restricted access to collation centres;

The EC reiterated that constituency collation centres are restricted areas. Only accredited persons, including two agents per candidate, are allowed entry to ensure an organised and secure environment.  

He said: "The Commission wishes to inform the leadership of all political parties and presidential candidates that the collation centres are restricted areas. Only persons who have been accredited by the Electoral Commission can have access to the constituency collation centres, and each candidate has two agents at each of the collation centres. There is no need for the collation centres to be overcrowded.

2. Overcrowding at Collation Centres;

While there have been instances of overcrowding at some collation centres, the police have successfully restored order and maintained security.  

3. Progress in Results Collation;
 
Approximately 60 percent of polling station results have been received at constituency collation centres nationwide, marking progress in the vote collation process.  

4. Second recounts rare;
 
The Suaman Constituency in the Western North Region is the only location to have requested a second recount at the constituency collation centre.  

Mr. Tettey said: "We also have reports of the number of second request for recounts at polling stations. So far, we have only one polling station, which is the Suaman constituency in the Western North region, which has recorded a second recount for votes at the constituency collation centre for the final recount by the returning officer".

5. Professionalism of EC Staff;

Mr Tettey said the performance of returning officers and collation officers has been commendable, with the EC praising their professionalism and urging them to maintain high standards as collation continues.  

6. Strong security presence;

The EC commended the stable and effective security provided by the police at collation centres, ensuring a peaceful process thus far.  

7. Presence of Election Observers;

Observers from organisations such as CODEO, ECOWAS, the African Union (AU), and the Commonwealth are actively monitoring activities at the constituency collation centres.  

8. Cooperation from candidates;
 
He said political party candidates and their agents have cooperated well with the EC at collation centres, contributing to a smooth collation process.  

9. Media responsibility
 
The EC acknowledged the media’s professionalism during the election but urged them to verify information, particularly results, before publishing to avoid misinformation.  

10. Next Steps in the collation process
 
The EC announced that it would proceed to the National Collation Centre to await results from all regions, signalling the final stages of the electoral process.  

The Commission expressed gratitude to all stakeholders for their cooperation and assured the public of its commitment to transparency and fairness as the collation of results continues.

He said: "The candidates have been very cooperative at the constituency collation centres so far, and we still urge them to cooperate with the position to ensure a seamless collation process or exercise with respect to the media, the Commission appreciates the high level of their professionalism demonstrated so far that we, however, urge the media to always verify or cross check their information as well, as importantly, the results that they put into the public domain. On this note, we want to thank all of you, and from here, we will be heading towards the collation centre and the National Collation Centre and wait for the results from the regions. Thank you".