July 17, 2024

In Part One of this two-part series, we discussed the process of voter registration, the exhibition of the provisional voters register, balloting for positions on the ballot paper, and the printing and distribution of ballot papers. Transparency is a key feature in Ghana’s electoral processes, allowing all stakeholders, especially political parties, to actively participate in and observe every step. Moreover, at any point in each electoral process, stakeholders can seek redress for any issues they are dissatisfied with. Political party representatives take part in the adjudication process, such as the District Registration Review Committee (DRRC) that examines and decides on registration challenge cases and the Adjudication Review Committee (ARC) that examines and decides on cases of multiple registration. In this concluding part, we will discuss what happens on Election Day. So, what makes Ghana’s electoral process so incontrovertible that even on Election Day, it is impossible to rig elections in Ghana? On Election Day On Election Day, political parties have their agents at all polling stations. There are also independent observers (both local and international) and the media present. At the beginning of voting, an empty transparent ballot box is shown to all stakeholders and voters present. The ballot box is then sealed with the seals of the Commission and political parties who choose to place their seals on it. At the close of voting, all parties ensure that the seals remain intact, confirming that no one has been able to open the ballot box in order to illegally stuff ballots into it. The ballot box is placed in full view of the public for the receipt of ballot papers. Pre-voting ballot accounting is done by election officials in the presence of party agents and observers. The total number of ballot papers is counted, and their serial numbers checked and recorded. Party agents, observer groups, and the media monitor the process of verifying voters, issuing of ballots to voters, and the voting process itself. At the close of voting, post-voting ballot accounting is done by election officials in the presence of party agents and observers. The Presiding Officer, who conducts the counting of votes, is required to wear white gloves and raise both hands to show that he or she is wearing those gloves. This measure prevents any situation where counting officers could use ink to spoil ballots cast at certain polling stations. With white gloves, stakeholders can easily notice any such nefarious actions. The seals are then broken off the ballot box, and the ballot papers are removed and placed on a clean table. The counting process, which is audible, is conducted in full view of all political party agents, observer groups, the media, and the general public. When the counting is completed, the results are entered on a carbonised Statement of Poll and Declaration of Results Form (a.k.a. Pink Sheet, a nickname given to the carbonised form because of its colour; the colour used to be blue, by the way, but was changed on the advice of the printers that you get better carbon copies with pink). The carbonised Pink Sheets are designed to ensure that there is a copy for every candidate in the election. Using carbonised Pink Sheets ensures that what is written on the first page appears on all other pages. For instance, if there are ten candidates in the presidential election, the Pink Sheet will have more than ten carbon copies to ensure that each candidate or their agent present at each polling station can have a copy. The Pink Sheet is signed by all agents, and the results are announced by the Presiding Officer. The law requires that a copy of the Pink Sheet is posted on the wall of the polling station. Copies are also given to all party agents, as mentioned earlier. Every member of the public can take a photo of the results. The media and some observers collate their results from these Pink Sheets, helping them to use parallel tabulation to be able to often project the results of the elections before the Electoral Commission officially declares the final results. If a party is not satisfied with the counting at a polling station, they can request a recount at the polling station. If they are still not satisfied, a second recount can be requested. The Presiding Officer may refuse to comply with the request for a second recount if, in their opinion, the request is unreasonable. They shall report the matter to the Returning Officer, who shall recount the ballots for that polling station only at the constituency collation centre. So, from all polling stations, political parties or their stakeholders need only to collate the results from the Pink Sheets—whether for the presidential or parliamentary election—just as the media and observer groups do. Whoever gets more votes from the polling station Pink Sheets across the country in the presidential election is the winner. Whoever gets more votes from the polling station Pink Sheets across any constituency in the parliamentary election is the winner of the parliamentary election in that constituency. It is the results from the Pink Sheets that determine the winner of the election, be they parliamentary or presidential. Collation and Declaration of Results For the presidential election, the whole country is one constituency. Therefore, all results from all polling stations must be added up so that the Chairperson of the Electoral Commission, who is the Returning Officer of the Presidential Election, can declare the winner. To sum up the results of the Presidential Election: The polling station Pink Sheets for each constituency are all sent to the Constituency Collation Centre. All the results from all polling stations in that constituency are added up, in the presence of political party agents. The winner for that constituency is announced, and a copy of the results is posted at the Constituency Collation Centre. The results, set out on the Presidential Election Results Collation Form (Form 9) and the Presidential Election Results Summary Sheet (Form 10), are then forwarded to

“Elections are won or lost at the polling station.” The position of the Electoral Commission of Ghana has always been that the outcome of elections is determined at the Polling Stations. Over the years, the electoral system and processes have been improved and enhanced. Every stakeholder familiar with Ghana’s electoral system understands that given the level of transparency and active participation of all stakeholders, especially the political parties, at each stage of the electoral process, it is practically impossible to rig elections in Ghana for one party or the other. Yet, this has not stopped political parties and other stakeholders with vested interests from accusing the Electoral Commission (EC) of seeking to rig elections during election years. What Does It Mean to Rig Elections? Allegations of rigging elections are a global phenomenon not unique to Ghana. But what does it mean to rig elections? According to the Collins Dictionary, “If someone rigs an election, they dishonestly arrange it to get the result they want or to give someone an unfair advantage” (https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/rig-an-election). The Cambridge Dictionary defines “Ballot rigging” as, “the practice of using illegal methods to obtain a particular result in an election” (https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/ballot-rigging#google_vignette). From these definitions and others not quoted here, rigging elections involves manipulating the electoral process to illegally interfere with the elections. This could mean helping to increase the votes of a particular candidate or party, depressing the votes of another, arranging to fix the results, or using illegal methods to obtain a particular outcome. Ghana’s Electoral Process is Credible Ghana’s electoral process comprises electoral laws, the demarcation of electoral boundaries, voter registration, candidate nomination, and the elections themselves. What makes Ghana’s electoral process so credible such that it is impossible to rig elections? In Part One of this two-part series, we will discuss voter registration, the exhibition of the provisional voters register, balloting for positions on the ballot paper, and the printing of ballot papers. Electoral Laws The Constitution of Ghana and other electoral laws provide for credible elections. All stakeholders, especially political parties and candidates, are required to adhere to these electoral laws. Voter Registration By law, 21 days before the registration exercise, the Electoral Commission (EC) is required to publish in the Gazette all the registration centres where voters can apply to be registered. All political parties in Ghana and observer groups are made aware of these registration centres. Political parties have their agents at every registration centre nationwide. Additionally, accredited observer groups are present at these centres. Political parties receive both start-of-day and end-of-day reports at each registration centre. The start-of-day report provides the total number of voters registered at the registration centre by the close of the previous day, while the end-of-day report provides the cumulative number of registered voters at the close of day. Between the two reports, voters registered at a registration centre for each day can be calculated. Political party agents collate daily figures of registered voters from these reports, in addition to their own independent tallies. The total number of registered voters published by the EC at the end of each day matches the figures collated by the political parties from all gazetted registration centres nationwide. This is as a result of the start-of-day and end-of-day reports, and also as a result of the fact that the political parties themselves also collate daily figures. For 2024, once the mop-up registration exercise is completed in August, the EC will publish the total number of voters registered from the 2024 limited voters registration exercise, a number that will tally with what the  political parties have collated. During the registration exercise, voters whose applications were challenged in accordance with the law have their applications examined by the District Registration Review Committee (DRRC) set up in every district. The role of the DRRC is to examine all challenges and to determine, based on available evidence, whether to uphold or reject a challenge. If a challenge is upheld, the voter is removed from the register. Membership of the DRRC, by law, includes one representative of each registered political party active in the district. Finally, for voters who are deemed to have registered multiple times in violation of the law, their applications undergo a review by an Adjudication Review Committee (ARC), which includes political party representatives and representatives of selected Civil Society Organisations. The ARC examines all cases of multiple registration flagged by the registration system. If the ARC confirms that a voter has indeed engaged in multiple registration, the voter is placed on the Multiple Registration List, barring them from voting. Before the mop-up registration exercise and the exhibition of the provisional voters register in August 2024, the Commission received and processed applications from registered voters for the Transfer of Votes, Proxy Votes and Special Voting. Political parties were allowed to observe all these processes, despite initial violent events witnessed during the Transfer of Votes exercise which caused the Commission to temporarily suspend the decision to allow political parties to observe the exercise . Exhibition of the Provisional Voters Register The officers who register voters are human and can make mistakes when entering voter details. For example, there can be wrong spelling of names, age, sex and Registration Centre codes. One of the reasons for the Exhibition of the provisional voters register is to correct such errors. The Exhibition also allows voters to check that their name is in the register and that all their details are correct. Moreover, the exhibition allows voters to request for names of deceased persons to be removed from the register. It is important to note that a voter can still vote on Election Day as long as their voter identification number can be found in the polling station voters register, even if there is an error such as the wrong sex on their voter ID card. It is also important to note that the Commission provides an opportunity during the exhibition period for voters to check online whether their name is in the voters register. Political