GHANA : EC SETS OCTOBER 5 FOR FILING OF PRESIDENTIAL , PARLIAMENTARY ASPIRANTS’ NOMINATION FORMS

Jean Mensah, Electoral commissioner, Ghana

The Electoral Commission (EC) of Ghana will from October 5, 2020, begin receiving nominations from eligible presidential and parliamentary aspirants from all political parties, as well as independent candidates.

This will form part of the preparation process towards the impending general and parliamentary elections slated for December 7, 2020.

On October 12 and 13, 2020, five days after all candidates have filed their nominations, there will be Regional Interparty Advisory Committee (RIPAC) and District Interparty Advisory Committee (DIPAC) meetings, where balloting for positions will be done.

Notices of nomination will also be posted in that period, from October 12 to 15.

This will be followed by the printing and distribution of the final voters’ list from October 14 to November 22, 2020.

Following the current voter registration exercise, there will be stakeholder engagements at national and regional levels from Monday, July 13, to Monday November 30, 2020.

From July 22 to August 14, there will be a sitting of all District Registration Review Committees to review all challenges the commission encountered in the mass voter registration exercise.

Within that same period, from August 1 to August 10, there will be a mop-up registration exercise.

An Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) meeting on the voters register exhibition exercise is also scheduled to be held on Monday, August 18.

This meeting will be followed by a RIPAC and DIPAC meeting from August 20 to 21 on the voter register exhibition exercise.

On September 3, there will be an IPAC meeting on nominations and the conduct of the 2020 polls.

Five days after this meeting, from September 8 to 11, the appointments of returning officers and their deputies will be done.

RIPAC and DIPAC meetings on nominations and the conduct of the 2020 elections will be held from September 8 to 9.

The exhibition of the voters’ register will then take place from Friday, September 11, to Friday, September 18, 2020.

A writ of elections shall be issued by the EC on the September 17. A gazette publication of this writ will be done on the same day.

Recruitment for election officials will be done from Sunday, October 11, to Sunday, October 18.

There will be another round of RIPAC and DIPAC meeting on the balloting positions of all independent parliamentary candidates.

The EC will have a dialogue with all presidential and parliamentary candidates from October 15 and 16, 2020.

The printing and gazetting of Notices of Poll will be done from October 26 to November 24.

Ballot papers shall be printed and distributed from Monday, October 26, to Tuesday, November 24, this year.

Copies of the final voters’ register will be distributed to the various political parties on November 6, a month and a day to the elections.

Six days later, on November 12, there shall be a final IPAC meeting between the EC and the political parties to update them on the preparations towards the elections.

RIPAC and DIPAC meetings under the same theme shall be held on November 18 and 19.

A special voting exercise shall be conducted on Tuesday, December 1, followed by the national election six days later.

Results for the presidential elections will be declared on December 10, three days after the elections have been held.

In case none of the presidential candidates gets the required 50.1% of valid votes cast, a run-off between the two leading candidates will be held on Monday, December 28.

Parliamentary election results will be gazetted on Wednesday, December 30, 2020.