#TrendingGH: Ghanaians speak on what influences their votes

Ghanaians will be going to the polls in December 2020, in what will be a true test of the country’s competitive elections in the fourth Republic besides the elections of 2000.

The country will be choosing its president as well as members of parliament. This year’s election will be the seventh general election since the country returned to full democracy in 1996.

Ghana has a multi-party system, However, there are two dominant political parties (the National Democratic Congress and the New Patriotic Party), with extreme difficulty for anyone to achieve electoral success under the banner of any other party.

The incumbent head of state and leader of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, is seeking re-election.

He will take on former President John Dramani Mahama, who was elected as the candidate for the main opposition party, the National Democratic Congress (NDC).

This will mark the third time the two politicians have faced each other, with then-Vice President Mahama having defeated Akufo-Addo in 2012 and Akufo-Addo having beaten Mahama in 2016.

Debate continues over the factors that influence electoral outcomes or voter behaviour and several factors have been noted, including the manifestos of political parties, the performance of the economy etc.

The two leading political parties in Ghana; the NPP and the NDC have launched manifestos to give the electorate a fair sense of their promises when voted into power.

GhanaWeb spoke to some electorates in Accra to find out what are the factors that influence people’s voting decisions.

A cross section of the public that GhanaWeb engaged said parties’ manifestos influence their decision when it comes to voting. Others also told GhanaWeb that they take into consideration the reality on the ground and not a manifesto.

Below is a video of electorates giving the factors that influence their voting;