A write-up on Ghana's 2016 and 2024 electoral reckonings

The spiral of power and the ilence of the strongholds

In the rule of life of Ghana’s democracy, elections are not mere contests of slogans or personalities, they are civic ceremonies of reckoning.

The 2016 and 2024 general elections stand as twin pillars in this spiral of accountability.

Each marked a turning, not just of governments, but of public trust.

Each revealed that the Ghanaian voter, though patient, is not passive; though loyal, not blind.

In 2016, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) rose on the wings of public frustration.

In 2024, it fell under the weight of its own contradictions.

In both moments, the people spoke, not with noise, but with silence.

Not with violence, but with absence.

And in that absence, a verdict was sealed.

The First Turning: (2016)-When the incumbent was rejected

The year 2016 marked a historic severe breach in friendly relations.

For the first time in Ghana’s Fourth Republic, a sitting president, John Dramani Mahama, was unseated.

The NPP, led by Nana Akufo-Addo, captured 53.85% of the vote, while the NDC fell to 44.40%.

Parliament followed suit: 169 seats for the NPP, 106 for the NDC.

What was the cause?

An aggregate of economic hardship, governance fatigue, and a failure to inspire.

“Dumsor” darkened homes and businesses.

Youth unemployment bred despair.

The national debt loomed at 73.4% of GDP.

And though the NDC campaigned on continuity, the people yearned for change.

The NPP’s promise of Free SHS and “Ghana Must Work Again” struck a chord.

The NDC’s “Forward Ever” rang hollow.

But beneath the numbers lay a deeper truth: the NDC’s own base, especially in the Volta Region, had grown weary.

Many stayed home.

Their silence was not betrayal, it was a call for renewal.

The Second Turning: (2024)-When the stronghold withdrew its blessing

Eight years later, the spiral turned again.

This time, it was the NPP that faced the people’s quiet rebuke.

The 2024 election delivered a landslide for the NDC, with reports of over 180 parliamentary seats and a decisive presidential victory.

But the story was not one of opposition triumph, it was one of ruling party collapse.

Over 2.1 million NPP voters from 2020 did not return in 2024.

The Ashanti Region, once the party’s ceremonial heartland, fell into apathy.

The reasons were manifold: economic collapse, internal disunity, and a sense of betrayal.

Inflation hovered near 25%.

The cedi had plunged to over ¢15 to the dollar.

Public debt exceeded 100% of GDP.

The IMF bailout and debt exchange program deepened public anxiety.

Scandals, galamsey, the National Cathedral, Cecilia Dapaah, shattered credibility.

And the party’s slogan, “Break the 8,” failed to resonate in a nation struggling to break the cycle of hardship.

Even the northern belt, expected to rally behind Dr Bawumia, remained loyal to the NDC.

The people had watched. And they had decided.

The Mirror Within the Spiral: What the two elections reveal

Both 2016 and 2024 were not just about who won, they were about why the incumbent lost.

In both cases, the ruling party failed to read the signs, failed to hear the silence, and failed to honor the covenant of governance.

1. In 2016, the NDC fell because it underestimated the cost of fatigue and the power of unmet expectations.

2. In 2024, the NPP fell because it neglected its roots, fractured its unity, and governed with detachment.

In both cases, the voter did not shout.

They simply stayed home. And in that silence, they spoke louder than any rally.

What The Politician Must Know: Power is not a birthright

Let this write-up be read in every assembly, every classroom, and every council of elders.

Let it be studied not as a tale of defeat, but as a teaching of democracy.

What politicians fail to recognize, that “Power” is not a birthright.

It is a trust. And when that trust is broken, by arrogance, neglect, or intransigence, the people will not fight.

They will simply withdraw their blessing.

And when they do, no slogan can save you. Only humility, service, and the courage to listen can restore what was lost.