Electoral Commission Proposes Shift of Election Date to November 7 and Designation as National Holidays

Madam Jean Mensa, the Chairperson of Ghana’s Electoral Commission, has suggested moving the date for both Presidential and Parliamentary elections from December 7 to November 7. This proposal, along with the recommendation to designate election days as national holidays, was presented during the Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) meeting held on Monday, January 22, 2024.

The Electoral Commission aims to stimulate discussions on potential improvements to the electoral process with these proposals. Emphasizing the benefits of an earlier election month, the Commission highlighted that declaring election days as national holidays could enhance civic engagement and foster a more robust democratic culture.

The initial proposal for changing the election date came from the Seventh-Day Adventist Church, which, in a petition to the Electoral Commission and the Attorney General, expressed that the current date, falling on a Saturday, conflicts with the Sabbath—a holy day dedicated to the worship of God. The church suggests adopting “the first (1st) or second (2nd) Tuesday of November” as the new date for Ghana’s general elections. The church advocates for this change to be codified to ensure Adventists’ freedom to worship.