Politics of Ghana takes place in a framework of a presidential representative democratic republic, whereby the president of Ghana is both head of state and head of government, and of a two party system. The seat of government is at Golden Jubilee House. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and Parliament. The judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature.
The New Patriotic Party is a centre-right and liberal-conservative political party in Ghana. Since the democratisation of Ghana in 1992, it has been one of the two dominant parties in Ghanaian politics, with its leading rival being the centre-left National Democratic Congress (NDC). John Kufuor of the NPP was President of Ghana from 2001 to 2009. At the elections held on 7 December 2004, the party won 129 out of 230 seats. The NPP candidate was Kufuor, who was re-elected as president with 52.75% of the vote. The New Patriotic Party symbol is the African elephant and the New Patriotic Party colours are red, white, and blue.
The National Democratic Congress (NDC) is a social democratic political party in Ghana, founded by Jerry Rawlings, who was Head of State in Ghana from 1981 to 1993. He became the President of Ghana from 1993 to 2001. Following the formation of the Provisional National Defence Council (PNDC), which ruled Ghana following the military coup d'état on 31 December 1981, there was pressure from the international community to restore democracy. The NDC was formed as the ruling party ahead of elections in 1992, in which Rawlings was elected president, and in 1996 Rawlings was re-elected as the NDC candidate. Rawlings' second term ended in 2001.
John Dramani Mahama is a Ghanaian politician who is the President-elect of Ghana, having won the 2024 Ghanaian general election and is scheduled to be inaugurated as President of Ghana on 7 January, 2025. He previously served as President of Ghana from 24 July 2012 to 7 January 2017 and Vice President of Ghana from January 2009 to July 2012. He took office as president on 24 July 2012, following the death of his predecessor, John Atta Mills.
Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is a Ghanaian politician who has served as the 12th president of Ghana since 2017. He previously served as Attorney General from 2001 to 2003 and as Minister for Foreign Affairs from 2003 to 2007 under the administration of then-president John Kufuor.
The Supreme Court of Ghana is the highest judicial body in Ghana. Ghana's 1992 constitution guarantees the independence and separation of the Judiciary from the Legislative and the Executive arms of government.
The Council of State in Ghana is a small body of prominent citizens, analogous to the Council of Elders in the traditional political system, which advises the president on national issues.
General elections were held in Ghana on Friday 7 December 2012 to elect a president and members of Parliament in 275 electoral constituencies. Owing to the breakdown of some biometric verification machines, some voters could not vote, and voting was extended to Saturday 8 December 2012. A run-off was scheduled for 28 December 2012 if no presidential candidate received an absolute majority of 50% plus one vote. Competing for presidency were incumbent president John Dramani Mahama of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), his main challenger Nana Akufo-Addo of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and six other candidates.
Ghana gained independence from the British on 6 March 1957. It is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. The country became a republic on July 1, 1960.
Joe Ghartey is a Ghanaian lawyer, politician and member of the New Patriotic Party. He is a former Attorney-General of Ghana (2006–2009), Second Deputy Speaker of Parliament (2013–2017) and Railways Development Minister (2017–2021). Joe Ghartey hails from Shama in the Western Region.
The vice-president of Ghana is the second-highest officer in the Government of Ghana. The vice-president, together with the President of Ghana, is directly elected by the people through popular vote to serve a four-year term in office. The vice-president is the first person in the presidential line of succession, and would ascend to the presidency upon the death, resignation, or removal of the president. The current vice-president is Mahamudu Bawumia, who took office on 7 January 2017, under President Nana Akufo-Addo.
General elections were held in Ghana on 7 December 2016 to elect a President and Members of Parliament. They had originally been scheduled for 7 November 2016, but the date was later rejected by Parliament. Former foreign minister Nana Akufo-Addo of the opposition New Patriotic Party was elected President on his third attempt, defeating incumbent President John Mahama of the National Democratic Congress.
Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo took office as Ghana's president on 7 January 2017 after winning the December 2016 presidential elections. A number of controversies have arisen under his administration.
Kwasi Anin-Yeboah is a Ghanaian judge and a former Chief Justice of Ghana. In December 2019, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo nominated Justice Anin-Yeboah as the Chief Justice of Ghana.
Jean Adukwei Mensa is a Ghanaian lawyer by profession who has been serving as chairperson of the Electoral Commission of Ghana since July 2018. She was nominated by the President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akuffo-Addo to take over the chairperson of the Electoral Commission (EC) from her predecessor, Charlotte Osei. Jean Mensa was born on November 12, 1971. Prior to assuming the role of chairperson of the EC, Jean Mensa spent an 18-year career at the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA), rising to the position of executive director. As the EC chairperson, Jean Mensa declared the then presidential candidate Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo of the NPP as the president-elect of the December 7th, 2020 Presidential Election.
General elections were held in Ghana on 7 December 2020. Incumbent President Nana Akufo-Addo of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) was re-elected in the first round after securing a majority of the votes. Former President John Dramani Mahama announced that he would contest the results. At the Supreme Court, a petition challenging the result was filed on 30 December, and unanimously dismissed on 4 March 2021 for lack of merit.
The presidency of Nana Akufo-Addo began on 7 January 2017. Following the 2016 Ghanaian general elections, Nana Akufo-Addo the flag-bearer of the New Patriotic Party, succeeded John Mahama as the 5th President of the Ghanaian Fourth Republic after winning by a landslide. He won a second term on 9 December 2020 in a tightly contested race against National Democratic Congress (NDC) candidate and former president, John Mahama.
The presidency of John Mahama began on 24 July 2012 and ended on 7 January 2017. John became the 4th President of the Ghanaian Fourth Republic after he succeeded John Atta Mills who died in office on 24 July 2012. Prior to that, he served as Vice-President of Ghana from January 2009 to July 2012.
The Political history of Ghana recounts the history of varying political systems that existed in Ghana during pre-colonial times, the colonial era and after independence. Pre-colonial Ghana was made up of several states and ethnic groups whose political system was categorized by 3 main administrative models; Centralized, Non-centralized and Theocratic states. In the colonial era, the British Empire employed different forms of government among its four territorial possessions in the Gold Coast. Indirect rule was implemented in the late 19th century after its success in Northern Nigeria. From the 1940s, native Ghanaians yearned for more autonomy. This resulted in the several constitutional reforms as well as the creation of the office of the Prime Minister in 1952.
Africaportal 
Politicsportal 
