The Electoral Commission (EC) has announced that its proposal to move the date for general elections from December 7 to November will not be implemented this year.
Dr. Eric Bossman Asare, the Deputy EC Chairman in charge of Corporate Services, says the necessary legislation for this change will be presented to Parliament soon, but it won’t affect the upcoming elections.
Speaking on JoyNews, Dr. Bossman Asare stated, “So within the last few months, this is something the Commission is going to trigger.” The proposal for the date change, along with the suggestion to designate election days as national holidays, was put forward during the Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) meeting held on January 22, 2024.
The Commission argued that an earlier election month and national holidays on election days could enhance civic engagement and foster a stronger democratic culture.
However, opposition from groups such as the National Democratic Congress (NDC) pushed back, insisting that any major electoral reforms should align with the consensus for implementation starting from November 2028.
Dr. Bossman Asare clarified on JoyNews that the proposed change won’t take effect in this year’s polls. He also specified that the new date would be a selected day in November, not necessarily November 7 as speculated.
“This must be clear, we were not talking about November 7. At the IPAC meeting, the decision was a day in November. So, it can be the first Monday, a second Monday, a third Monday or Tuesday or Friday or Thursday,” he said.
