Who wins bid to lead NPP as flagbearer: Voting underway smoothly
Today’s presidential primary of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) can only produce a winner if any of the five candidates obtains more than 50 per cent of the votes.
Anything short of that will call for a run-off between the two leading candidates in 14 days.
Gilbert Mawuli Agbey reports from Kumasi that voting commenced at exactly 7am across all the 47 constituencies within the Ashanti Region.
In all, 36,626 delegates are expected to vote across the Ashanti Region.
At the Kumasi Cultural Centre, hundreds of delegates in the Bantama constituency converged to vote in the presidential primary.
A total of 899 delegates are expected to cast their ballot in the constituency.
The voting process has been characterised by long winding queues as some of the delegates came early to vote to enable them to attend to other activities.
There has not been any misunderstanding since the voting process began.
More importantly, there is heavy security presence at the centre made up of personnel of the Ghana Police Service.
As of 9am, more than 100 delegates had cast their ballot
A member of the Kennedy Agyapong team, Ralph Agyapong expressed optimism that Kennedy Agyapong will win the constituency and the entire primary.
Supporters of former Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawuima disagreed and insisted that the delegates would give Dr Bawumia another chance to lead the NPP.
In an interview, the Member of Parliament for Bantama, Francis Asenso-Boakye expressed delight about the smooth voting process.
He expressed optimism that the delegates would elect a formidable flagbearer to lead the party in the crucial 2028 elections.
Ho
From Ho, Alberto Mario Noretti reports that delegates turned up early at the two polling stations at OLA Ho Senior High School to elect the flag bearer.
The process started smoothly at 7:00 am, with a remarkably heavy police presence.
The Ho Municipal Electoral Commission (EC) Officer, Emilia Akortia said 230 delegates out of the expected 1,399 had cast their votes as of 9am.
He described the voting process as very orderly and peaceful.
“We do not expect any untoward incident,” she added.
Sunyani
Biiya Mukusah Ali reports from Sunyani that the process has been largely peaceful, with calm and orderly voting across the 12 constituencies.
The enthusiasm among the 7,997 delegates to elect a flag bearer for the party was very high in the region.
As early as 6:30 a.m., some delegates had already formed queues at various designated polling centres to cast their ballots.
Agents of all the five presidential candidates were present at the various voting centres, ensuring close monitoring of the process.
At Sunyani East Constituency, the agents were seen observing voting procedures, verifying delegate lists and engaging party officials where necessary, all without disrupting the smooth conduct of the polls.
The Sunyani East Municipal Director of Electoral Commission (EC), Winifred Agyekum, told Graphic Online that at 9:50 a.m., a total of 175 delegates had voted.
She said 891 delegates were expected to vote at the centre.
Also, the regional police administration beefed up security to ensure law and order.
There was a strict adherence to electoral guidelines laid down by the party across the voting centres.
Northern Region
Mohammed Fugu and Abukari Alhassan Baba reports that voting is currently underway in all the 18 constituencies across the Northern Region in the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Presidential primary.
A total of 12,474 delegates are expected to cast their ballots at 19 designated voting centres in the region.
When Graphic Online reporters toured voting centers in the Sagnarigu, Tamale South, Tamale North, and Tamale Central constituencies, voting was ongoing smoothly.
Delegates arrived very early with many dressed in party colours, queuing to cast their ballots.
In Tamale Central, about 35 delegates had cast their votes as of 8:30am.
Voting at the centre commenced on schedule, with electoral officials efficiently guiding delegates through the process.
The verification and voting procedures were carried out swiftly, helping to prevent long queues.
At the Sagnarigu voting centre, turnout was steady, with delegates trickling in at intervals. Party officials were on hand to provide directions, while observers monitored the process from a distance.
Similar scenes were observed in Tamale South and Tamale North, where voting progressed smoothly without interruptions.
Security presence was noticeable across all the centres visited. Police officers were strategically positioned to maintain law and order, while access to the voting areas was restricted to accredited delegates and officials.
This visible security presence helped create a peaceful environment and boosted confidence among delegates.
As of 8:50am, no incidents had been reported at any of the centres, and both party officials and delegates expressed satisfaction with the conduct of the exercise.
Assin Central
Shirley Asiedu Addo reports that Mr Kennedy Agyapong, one of the aspirants, moments after he cast his ballot at the Centenary polling station in the Assin Central constituency of the Central region, said he expects a fair contest.
In an interview with the media, Mr Agyapong said he expected a violence-free and fair contest.
"I don't think there will be a repetition of what happened in 2023. We hope it doesn't happen. And we have all done our job well to prevent rigging and everything, so I expect a fair context," he stated.
He indicated that the party had done a lot to ensure a smooth election.
"I don't expect any violence if you look at the number of police here and everything. We are praying."
He further stated that he was hopeful the winner of the contest would be able to bring the party together to go into the 2028 elections.
From the Cape Coast North and South constituencies, Shirley Asiedu-Addo and Joana Kumi report that voting commenced promptly and smoothly.
According to the presiding officer for Cape Coast South constituency, Richard Asenso, 68 out of the expected 637 candidates had cast their votes as of 8:02 am.
In the Cape Coast North constituency, the presiding officer, Emelia Nyarko reported that 100 out of the 635 expected candidates had participated in the voting process as of 8:46 am.
Both constituencies maintained a calm atmosphere, with many security personnel present to ensure that the elections proceeded without incident.
From Kpandai, Simon Unyan reports that the Member of Parliament for the area, Mathew Nyindam, called on party members to use the internal election as an opportunity for reflection, reorganisation, and reconciliation ahead of upcoming national polls.
According to him, the process should strengthen unity within the party and encourage members to work together towards a common goal after the election.
Mr. Nyindam made the call after casting the first ballot when voting commenced promptly at 7:00 a.m. He expressed confidence that the election would be peaceful across the country.
He commended the Electoral Commission (EC) for the timely start of the process and urged delegates to conduct themselves in a peaceful and orderly manner throughout the exercise.
The Kpandai MP also lauded the District Police Command for deploying adequate security personnel to ensure a smooth and incident-free election.
In all, 773 delegates are expected to cast their ballots in the constituency.
Some supporters of Dr. Bryan Acheampong in the Kpandai Constituency expressed strong confidence that their candidate will secure a decisive victory in the ongoing internal contest.
According to them, intensive groundwork and growing enthusiasm among delegates clearly indicate that Dr. Acheampong remains the preferred choice in the area.
They maintained that he is the most marketable candidate capable of leading the party to reclaim political power in the 2028 general election.
The Constituency Coordinator of Dr. Bryan Acheampong’s campaign team, Joseph Kupue, told Graphic Online that the camp is optimistic of polling more than 500 votes out of the 774 delegates expected to cast their ballots.
"We have done our homework very well, and the response from delegates has been encouraging. The signs on the ground point to a massive win for Dr. Acheampong,” he stated.
Some supporters in the constituency say they are determined to rally behind Dr. Acheampong to ensure a convincing outcome when voting closes.
From Koforidua, the Eastern Regional capital Haruna Yussif Wunpini reports that the voting was generally peaceful.
A total of 22,264 delegates are expected to cast their ballots in 36 polling stations across the 33 constituencies.
The Eastern Regional Secretary of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Anthony Osei-Adjei told Graphic Online that constituencies such as Nsawam-Adoagyir, Nkawkaw, and New Juaben South have two polling centres each (A and B) due to their large delegate numbers, which exceeded 1000.
