NDC votes in Volta, Ashanti regions have declined – Research

Analysis of data on presidential election results from 1992 to 2016 reveals that the National Democratic Congress (NDC) have been losing votes in Ashanti Region and their stronghold, Volta Region.

According to the Governance Research Bureau, in the Volta Region, the NDC votes declined from 93.24 to 80.97 percent while votes in Ashanti Region reduced over the years from 32.87 percent to 23.32 percent.

Discussing the 2020 elections on Election Watch on TV3 earlier this week, Dr Ezekiel Nortey, a researcher at the Bureau, said during the same period, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) had been doing well in the Volta Region beginning with a paltry 3.61 per cent of the votes in 1992 and increasing them to 17.38 per cent in 2016.

The Senior Lecturer in Statistics and Actuarial Science at the University of Ghana, Legon, said the NPP, at the same time, had been consolidating their grip on the Ashanti Region, adding that from recording 60.54 per cent of the votes in 1992, the party’s share shot up to 75.98 per cent in 2016.

Assigning reasons for the NPP’s performance in the Volta Region, Dr Kwame Asah Asante, also of the Governance Research Bureau, attributed it to voters in the region perceiving the party as capable of improving their economic wellbeing and voting for them in the election.

Besides, according to Dr Asante, also a Senior Lecturer in Political Science at the University of Ghana, Legon, some voters in the Volta Region might have revised their long-held negative perception about the NPP, giving way to an objective assessment of the party and exercising their preference in their favour

On the NDC’s continuous loss of votes in the Ashanti Region, he observed that the NPP had been consolidating their support with better performance, which enabled them to win in New Edubiase, as well as doing well in their opponents’ enclaves in the region.

Election Watch shows on TV3 every Wednesday from 10:30am, and it’s brought to you by the Governance Research Bureau in collaboration with the Election Command Centre.