Benjamin Danso unseats Ashie Moore as NDC Greater Accra chairman as regional results roll in

ACCRA, Nov. 14 – Benjamin Danso has unseated Emmanuel Nii Ashie Moore as Greater Accra Regional Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), the biggest upset of the party’s regional executive elections held across the country on Saturday.

Mr Danso’s victory ends Mr Ashie Moore’s tenure, which began in November 2022 when he defeated then-incumbent Joseph Ade Coker, MyJoyOnline reported. Mr Danso will lead the party in the region for the next four years.

Ahead of the vote, Mr Ashie Moore had expressed confidence that delegates would retain him. “I’m very confident the delegates today will reward hard work,” he said.

Mr Danso, a former Krowor Constituency Chairman who in June 2023 was elected chairman of the Greater Accra NDC Constituency Chairmen’s Association, had pledged to lead with service, integrity and commitment to the party’s grassroots, and to build a united party structure across all 34 constituencies in the region ahead of the 2028 general elections, Citi Newsroom reported.

Results from the regions

By Saturday evening, the party had declared chairmen in 11 of its 16 regions, according to 3News. Results from Ahafo, Central, Oti, Savannah and Upper West were still pending.

• Ashanti: Augustus Andrews Nana Kwasi (re-elected) – 814 votes, ahead of Isham Alhassan Yaw Bonsu (622)
• Bono: Kwadwo Nyamekye-Marfo – 361 votes, ahead of Justice Samuel Adjei (36)
• Bono East: Ali Abubakar Donkor
• Eastern: Mark Oliver Kevor (re-elected)
• Greater Accra: Benjamin Danso
• North East: Alhaji Abdul Rauf Tanko Ibrahim – 146 votes, ahead of Abdul-Razak Saaka (59)
• Northern: Godfred Apasinaba Wumbei – 328 votes, ahead of Alhaji Tanko Maida (236)
• Upper East: Alhaji Abdulai Mumuni Bolnaba – 371 votes, ahead of Duncan Nsoh Ghaneba (151)
• Volta: Mawutor Agbavitor (sole candidate)
• Western: Nana Kojo Toku
• Western North: Michael Aidoo (re-elected) – 202 votes, ahead of Jerry Kankam (109)

In the Upper East Region, Alhaji Bolnaba, who has led the region since December 2005, won another term with a 220-vote margin, Graphic Online reported. In Bono, Mr Nyamekye-Marfo took more than 90 per cent of the vote in his first contested race after being returned unopposed in 2018 and 2022.

In the Central Region, the result had not been declared by Saturday evening. The sitting chairman, Richard Asiedu, has demanded a recount, Citi Newsroom reported.

How the vote worked

The Electoral Commission conducted the polls while the police led security, and proxy voting was not allowed. Voting started late in some regions, including Ashanti, where security was heavy at the election centre, 3News reported.

The regional polls come ahead of the NDC’s National Congress on December 19, where the party will elect its national officers.

Source: MyJoyOnline; Citi Newsroom; 3News; Graphic Online.

Featured image: Oye News GH graphic.