AFPOpposition candidate and former Ghanaian president John Mahama has promised “a brand new starting, a brand new route” for the nation after being formally declared the winner of Saturday’s presidential election.
Mahama received with 56.6% towards Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia’s 41.6%. It’s the biggest margin of victory within the nation in 24 years.
Voter turnout was 60.9%, mentioned the pinnacle of Ghana’s electoral fee, Jean Mensa.
Mahama mentioned he felt “humbled” that he and his National Democratic Congress (NDC) had “deemed among the finest ends in Ghana’s electoral historical past”.
He additionally famous that Ghana had “made historical past” by selecting its first feminine Vice President, Jane Naana Opoku Agyemang.
And he thanked Bawumia for conceding, which he did effectively earlier than the official announcement of the outcomes.
The vp mentioned he was doing so “to keep away from additional tensions and protect peace in our nation.”
However, there was nonetheless some frustration that it had taken so lengthy to announce the official outcomes.
President Nana Akufo-Addo steps down after reaching his official two-term restrict.
This election comes within the midst of the worst financial disaster in a technology.
Key points embody unemployment, the price of residing and considerations in regards to the environmental impression of unlawful gold mining, often called “galmasey”.
With many Ghanaians determined for change, Mahama received a number of areas – together with Bono, Ahafo, Western and Central – that the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) had received in 2020.
After Bawumia’s concession on Sunday, Mahama’s supporters celebrated throughout the nation.
People cheered, waved flags, honked their horns and revved their motorbikes.
“I’m so enthusiastic about this victory,” Salifu Abdul-Fatawu informed the BBC within the central metropolis of Kumasi.
He mentioned he hoped it meant he and his brother would discover work, whereas the value of meals and gasoline would drop.
While the election was usually peaceable, two folks have been shot lifeless in separate incidents on Saturday.
The electoral fee workplace within the northern city of Damongo was additionally destroyed, allegedly by NDC supporters offended at delays in asserting the outcomes.
Mahama, 65, beforehand led Ghana from 2012 to 2017, when he was changed by Akufo-Addo. Mahama additionally misplaced the 2020 elections, so this victory represents a surprising comeback.
Mahama’s NDC and the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) have alternated in energy because the return of multi-party politics to Ghana in 1992.
No occasion has ever received greater than two consecutive phrases in energy: a development that appears set to proceed.
Mahama’s earlier interval in workplace was marked by a struggling economic system, frequent energy outages and corruption scandals.
However, Ghanaians hope that this time issues will probably be completely different.
During the marketing campaign, Mahama promised to rework Ghana right into a “24-hour economic system”.
The new president will probably be sworn in on January 7, 2025.
Additional reporting by BBC’s Komla Adom in Kumasi.
Getty Images/BBC
