Ghana President Wins Second Term, According To Electoral Commission

Ghana President Wins Second Term, According To Electoral Commission
Nana Akufo-Addo Photographer: Kola Sulaimon/AFP/Getty Images

Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo has won re-election, securing another four-year mandate to lead the West African country, the electoral commission announced.

The 76-year-old Akufo-Addo got 51.6% of the votes, while his closest rival John Mahama, of the main opposition National Democratic Congress, got 47.4%, the head of the country’s electoral commission Jean Mensa said.

More than 13 million ballots were cast out of a total electorate of 17 million and across 38,000 polling stations throughout the country. Voters also chose 275 lawmakers for the national parliament.

African regional and West African sub-regional groups which observed Monday’s general elections in Ghana were satisfied with the conduct of the elections, a statement sent early Wednesday said.

In a joint statement, the election observation groups from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the African Union (AU) and the United Nations Office in West Africa and Sahel (UNOWAS) commended the people of Ghana for the peaceful conduct of the polls.

They also urged state institutions in charge of the elections to discharge their duties with professionalism and transparency. (CGTN Africa)