Electoral Commission rejects calls to extend voter registration deadline

The Electoral Commission (EC) has declared that extending the deadline for the current limited voters registration exercise is not feasible.

Despite encountering technical difficulties during the first two days, the process has since proceeded smoothly nationwide.

The voter registration began on May 7, 2024, and is set to conclude on May 27, 2024. At a press conference

Read full articlein Accra, Samuel Tettey, Deputy EC Chair in Charge of Operations, stated that the 21-day period for the exercise is sufficient.

Tettey noted that while large queues were observed in some centers during the first week, the number of applicants has decreased significantly as the deadline approaches. Additionally, mobile teams have been deployed to remote areas to ensure all eligible applicants can register.

"We believe the current timeframe is adequate and extending it is not feasible," Tettey remarked.

As of May 19, 2024, the EC reported registering 522,025 new voters, with 85.52% being first-time voters aged 18-21. Males comprised 47.21% of the total, while females accounted for 52.79%. The EC aims to register 623,000 voters by the end of the exercise.

Among those registered, 813 are persons with disabilities, and there have been 7,821 challenged cases.

Regional registration figures include Greater Accra (74,420), North East (14,147), Upper East (20,125), Northern (47,948), Bono (20,886), Bono East (18,861), Volta (26,486), Upper West (15,652), Eastern (48,563), Central (56,141), and Ahafo (10,861). Ashanti leads with 90,480 registrations, followed by Western North (16,225), Oti (14,844), Savannah (12,767), and Western Region (33,609).

The EC dismissed claims by Election Watch Ghana that it is using "stolen" Biometric Voter Registration (BVR) kits to register voters secretly. Tettey clarified that only five laptops were stolen, which cannot be used independently for voter registration.