Ghana is widely considered one of the most stable and resilient democracies in West Africa. Since its return to multi-party democracy in 1992, Ghana has held eight democratic elections that have led to three alternations of power between political parties. Ghana’s polls are historically competitive, with high voter turnout and close results. In previous elections, both major political parties have accepted electoral outcomes and pursued their grievances through courts, contributing to Ghana’s history of peaceful transfers of power. However, Ghana’s elections are not without challenges. Concerns about electoral violence and transparency in electoral processes have grown in recent election cycles. As Ghanaians return to the polls in 2024, expectations are high not only within the country but also within the subregion, as credible and peaceful polls would serve as a bright spot during a challenging period for democracy in West Africa.

NDI has supported Ghanaian citizen observer groups to monitor electoral processes in the country since 1996. NDI provided technical assistance to the Coalition of Domestic Election Observers (CODEO) and its secretariat the Ghana Center for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana) in 2008, 2012, 2016, and 2020 to systematically observe presidential elections using the Process and Results Verification for Transparency (PRVT) methodology, which allows CODEO to independently verify the official election results. CODEO’s observation has strengthened public confidence in election results and in the credibility of the process. NDI will support CODEO to implement the PVT methodology for the 2024 elections to continue to promote greater transparency and accountability of the electoral process.

NDI and the International Republican Institute (IRI) deployed a joint international observation mission in 2016, including two high-level pre-election delegations and a thirty member delegation on election day. In 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, NDI and IRI conducted a virtual pre-election assessment mission and deployed a small technical team for election day. These efforts assessed preparations for the polls and offered recommendations to support Ghana’s efforts to conduct peaceful and credible elections.