John Atta Mills of the opposition National Democratic Congress party narrowly won a runoff election in Ghana.

Recently, Ghanaians returned to the polls for a runoff election after both major presidential candidates failed to gain a majority in last month’s vote. John Atta Mills of the opposition National Democratic Congress party narrowly defeated Nana Akufo-Addo of the ruling New Patriotic Party.

Leaders from the United Nations and several countries around the globe congratulated Ghana on the peaceful elections, the country’s second transfer of power between parties since restoring democratic elections in 1992. Some consider Ghana’s elections a model for African democracy, given election-related conflict in other African nations like Kenya and Zimbabwe.

Ayo Johnson is a journalist of African heritage working in the United Kingdom. He writes at “Africa speaks to you” about the significance of Ghana’s peaceful elections.

Ghana elections

Ghana is the blue-eyed boy of the African continent. One of Africa’s brightest-known democracies; from the famous Kwame Nkrumah for his revolutionary and progressive views and aspiration for a united Africa. To a chequered past was with that of infamous Jerry Rawlings – (NDC); who came to power repeatedly via the barrel of a gun. Rawlings finally adopted self-governing values with elections that eventually saw him crowned as president.

Election today in Ghana is a stark reminder of how far the nation have come since it’s independence 51 years ago. Ghana is a mature democracy having grown as a nation with decent economic growth forecasts that have cemented their position globally as a major producer of cocoa, gold and now new found wealth of high grade oil.

No wonder the John Atta-Mills of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and Nana Akufo-Addo of the ruling party New Patriotic Party (NPP) are prepared to fight tooth and nail to the bitter end; to get what must be a lucrative opportunity for high office in Ghana.

A win for John Atta-Mills of (NDC) will be dogged by counter claims and further appeals by (NPP) to the electoral commission of vote rigging and election irregularities. Both parties must use the judiciary in line with the constitution and take their grievance to the courts.

Both the (NDC) and (NPP) must respect the courts decision as final, failure to adhere could lead to increased tensions that could lead to chaos and anarchy.

To read more, see the original post.

Photo courtesy of Flickr user bbcworldservice under a Creative Commons license.

Ghanians text results of the election.

Ghana’s presidential election will see a second round after both candidates failed to win a majority of votes in Sunday’s election.

Voter turnout was high, at 69.5 percent, and some have called the peaceful election a “beacon of hope for Africa.”

The runoff between ruling party leader Nana Akufo-Addo and opposition candidate John Atta Mills is scheduled for Dec. 28.

For more on Ghana’s election, see what a Worldfocus contributing blogger had to say: Race tightens as ballots are tallied in Ghana.

Ghanian blogger “Mercy” writes that she is proud of the fair and free election and of the civic engagement of Ghanians, expressing support for the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP).

The “MobileActive” blog discusses the use of text messaging, which played a role in monitoring the election.

The National Democratic Congress (NDC), the opposition party, posts a blog entry expressing gratitude to supporters and the Ghanian media and asks for restraint on the part of threatening security organizations.

Ethan Zuckerman of the “My heart’s in Accra” blog writes that the ruling party is currently in the lead, and if Akufo-Addo emerges victorious in the runoff, he will face a divided government.

Blogger “Oluniyi David Ajao” asks, “Does Ghana exist?” and argues that the international media has ignored the Ghana election and only covers violence and starvation in Africa.

Watch a video of vote counting in Odododiodio, Ghana, from YouTube user hdnrp:

Photo courtesy of Flickr user bbcworldservice under a Creative Commons license.

A representative from the electoral commission supervises a Ghanian voter.

Ghanians are awaiting the results of Sunday’s national election. Current President John Kufuor of the New Patriotic Party is stepping down after two terms in office.

Tallies have shown both the ruling and opposition parties leading at varying points throughout the day, as the race is tight.

For more, see the election blog of “Think Ghana,” featuring ongoing updates and citizen reports.

Bright Simons is an executive at the African nonprofit IMANI Center for Policy and Education. He writes at citizen journalism portal OhMyNews about the election and the experience on the ground.

Ghana votes: Who wins, who loses?

Ghanaians are voting as I write.

They are at the polls to elect the sixth democratically chosen President and legislature in the country’s 51 year post-colonial history. Of the 11 regimes that have ruled the former British colony in that period, five have been military insurrectionists.

Most of the streets are deserted, but not from any fear of violence. This is a majority Christian country, and Sundays are normally observed as a Sabbath by many of the 70 percent of the population who profess adherence to the Christian faith. Moreover, the tail-end of this year’s election season has been amazingly calm due to loud clarion calls for peace by the Clergy, eminent members of Ghana’s large Diaspora, and most of the country’s political heavyweights.

As I walked through a peri-urban suburb of the capital, I was struck by the wide observance of the much-emphasized proscription against the overt display of partisan affiliation near any of the 21,000 polling stations across this West African nation of 22 million.

While most of the pre-election polls have seemed to favour the ruling NPP of sitting President John Agyekum Kuffuor and its flagbearer, Nana Addo Dankwa Akuffo-Addo, scion of a ruling dynasty that stretches back before the time of his father, Ghana’s second democratically elected Head of State, many pundits still say the contest is too close to call.

The opposition NDC has campaigned on a platform of change, though the tone has been angrier and grittier than the genial flavour that coloured the Obama revolution of recent times. That has however not stopped the NDC from insisting, sometimes even brashly, that their mission resonates with that of their Democratic counterparts across the Atlantic.

To read more, see the original post.

The views expressed by contributing bloggers do not reflect the views of Worldfocus or its partners.

Photo courtesy of flickr user bbcworldservice under a Creative Commons license.