Walking Ghana into Kenya 2007, what the EC and international stakeholders of elections should know!

As Ghana heads to the December 7, 2024 elections, searing tensions remain amidst unresolved concerns about the integrity of the electoral register and the perceived integrity of the Electoral Commission (EC) to conduct free and fair elections. As talks between the main opposition party, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the EC stall, and public’s trust and credibility in the EC wanes, the probable threat of post electoral violence is not only plausible but significantly high. What role can and should election observer mission and international stakeholders of democracy play in calming tensions and building trusts among the contenders? In this commentary, we highlight the risks and recommend critical stop-gap measures to avert mayhem during and after the polls drawing on the Kenyan 2007 elections disaster.

With barely four weeks to Ghana’s elections on December 7, 2024, searing tensions persist over unresolved concerns regarding the integrity of the electoral register and the perceived ability of the Electoral Commission (EC) to conduct free and fair elections. Controversies surrounding the integrity of the EC have intensified, with electoral campaigns facing widespread calls for transparency mainly championed by the main opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), which recently organized a nationwide demonstration on September 17. Its chief demand being a forensic audit of the voter register, citing discrepancies that render it unfit for the upcoming elections. Despite urgent calls and waves of protests, the grandstanding and seeming nonchalant posturing of the EC, has only reinforced doubt amongst its detractors as a signal of its unwillingness to address the growing demands for transparency in the upcoming December 7 elections!