NPP presidential primaries set for Jan 31 as 211,849 delegates vote at 333 centres

The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has announced that it is fully ready to conduct its presidential primaries on January 31, 2026, assuring party members and the general public of a transparent, credible, and secure electoral process.

A total of 211,849 delegates are expected to cast their votes at 333 polling centres across the party’s 276 constituencies nationwide. Voting will begin at 7:00 a.m. and end at 2:00 p.m.

Speaking in Accra on Tuesday, the Chairperson of the NPP Presidential Elections Committee, Joseph Osei-Owusu, said all logistical, administrative and security preparations had been completed, adding that the Electoral Commission (EC) would oversee the entire exercise.

He explained that the party worked closely with the EC in selecting polling centres, with most constituencies having one voting location. However, constituencies with more than 1,000 delegates were assigned additional centres within the same area, resulting in a total of 333 polling stations, including one at the party’s national headquarters in Accra.

Mr Osei-Owusu disclosed that two initially proposed polling centres were relocated after joint assessments involving the EC and constituency executives, a move he said received unanimous approval from all five presidential aspirants.

He further indicated that the delegate register went through a transparent validation process involving petitions and corrections, with representatives of all aspirants participating throughout. From an initial list of 213,617 names, 2,827 deceased members and 653 individuals who had lost their party membership were removed, leaving 211,849 eligible voters.

According to him, representatives of the aspirants are currently verifying and endorsing the final register at the party’s IT centre ahead of printing.

Mr Osei-Owusu also announced that the EC would handle voting, counting, collation and declaration of results. Results will first be declared at polling centres, then collated at regional centres before the final announcement at the NPP headquarters in Accra, where the winner will be formally presented to the public.

On security, he said the Ghana Police Service would deploy between 70 and 150 officers at each polling centre, with military support in selected areas, particularly in parts of the Upper East Region. He warned that the use of private security personnel or vigilante groups would not be tolerated.

He also revealed that proxy voting has been abolished for the primaries to protect the integrity of the process.

The five aspirants contesting the January 31 presidential primaries are Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, Kwabena Agyei Agyepong, Kennedy Ohene Agyapong, Dr Bryan Acheampong and Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum.

Mr Osei-Owusu expressed confidence that the outcome of the primaries would be accepted by all contestants, stressing that the process would reflect the true will of the delegates.