Many enquiries into reasons for the NPP’s shocking loss at the polls in December, have passed damning verdict against certain decisions, actions and I actions of the erstwhile Akufo-Addo government, as being major causes of the NPP’s defeat
According to commentators on both social and mainstream media, many, commenting as NPP supporters, simply refused to go out and vote for their party, in protest against the Akufo-Addo government over many issues the ex President simply refused to listen, including taxes, refusal to reshuffle certain appointees on time, arrogance among some appointees, neglect of key projects in key strongholds, among others.
But beyond the social media verdict, are shocking numbers reflecting the volume of anger and apathy the NPP suffered, apparently from its own supporters, leading to the party’s heavy defeat in both the Presidential and Parliamentary elections, in some of the party’s stronghold constituencies and regions.
A comparative analysis of 2020 and 2024 election results, revealed that the NPP paid a heavy price for voter apathy, leading to significant loss of parliamentary seats, including traditional seats in stronghold regions, as well as a significant gap in the presidential.
From official Electoral Commission figures of the 2020 and 2024 election results, as many as 2,085,341 of the total number of votes the NPP had in 2020, stayed away from the 2024 elections, handing a fatal blow to the NPP.
In 2020, the NPP polled 6,730,587 votes , which ensured a first round victory. But with the Akufo-Addo government going into the 2024 elections with serious issues of corruption scandals, accusation in sensitivity over high taxes, allegations of arrogance against Akufo-Addo and some appointees, nepotism, high inflation, among others, the NPP suffered a dramatic loss of over 2 million votes in just one election.
A TREND OF VOTER APATHY IN STRONGHOLDS
In a clear analysis which point to core NPP supporters passing their own referendum on the Akufo-Addo government, an overwhelming majority of those who refused to vote were from regions that are stronghold of the NPP, or give the NPP significant numbers in both presidential and parliamentary seats, in any election.
Out of the national tally of 2,085,341 votes the NPP lost, as many as 1,754,874 of its 2020 numbers, representing 84.1%, from 6 key regions: Ashanti, Eastern, Western, Bono, Central and Greater Accra regions respectively .
The NPP lost 330,467 of its 2020 votes in the remaining 10 regions, representing 15.9%,, with the 5 northern regions (Savannah, Upper West, Upper East and North East), accounting for a net loss of 157,830, representing 7.5%. of the national tally of 2,085,341 votes the NPP lost.
EFFECT ON PARLIAMENTARY SEATS
The volume of apathy, leading to the significant loss votes in the regions above, considered either stronghold of the NPP, or favourable regions, also affected the party’s parliamentary fortunes.
In the Ashanti Region alone, which still gave the the NPP its highest votes and Parliamentary seats, inspite of the national apathy, the 42 seats the party won in 2020, declined by 3 seats, leaving the NPP with 39.
In the Bono and Ahafo Regions, which are considered safe for the NPP, the party was again badly affected by the huge voter apathy in the regions in the parliamentary election.
Against its pre-election analysis of annexing seats it lost in 2020 to improve on its existing 6 seats, the NPP rather shockingly lost 5 of those 6 seats, including two traditional seats in Sunyani East and Sunyani West.
In Ahafo, the NPP could retain only 1 of the 4 seats it won in 2020.
The parliamentary decline, as a result of huge voter apathy, was the same in the Central and Western regions.
In Central Region, the loss of about 231,000 of those who voted for the party in 2020, ensured that the NPP lost 6 seats in 2024, while the 164,000 vote loss in Western Region, meant the NPP also lost 7 seats in the Western Region.
Greater Accra registered the biggest apathy against the NPP, with a whopping 571,644 of votes for the NPP in 2020, vanishing, or refusing to show up for the party.
This had a telling effect on the party in both the presidential and parliamentary election, with the NPP losing as many as 9 seats in the region.
The trend of the huge voter apathy affecting the NPP’s parliamentary fortunes continued up north, eventhough not as huge as the rate of losses in Bono, Ahafo, Central, Western and the Greater Accra region.
In the Northern Region and North East regions, the NPP lost 3 each of its 9 and 6 seats respectively, while it lost 2 out of 3 seats in Savannah, 3 out of 3 in Upper West and 1 out of 1 in Upper East Region.
MARGINAL DECLINE OR MARGINAL GAINS BY NDC
Interestingly, in almost all constituencies and regions, the NDC, in both Presidential and Parliamentary results, did not make significant gains on their 2020 performance, despite the NPP losing huge numbers.
With the exception of a few constituencies which registered slight improvements in numbers for the NDC, two scenarios largely emerge in the analysis of the results: both the NDC Presidential and Parliamentary candidates either improve or decrease their 2020 results marginally.
But for the NPP, the verdict was just one and it’s so telling. It’s a verdict of expression of anger and apathy, leading to a significant decline of over 2 million votes of its 2020 numbers.
