Free movement, PWD-friendly polling stations mark polls

“I will vote after my shift,” Paulina Asaah said as she took an order from the next customer.

Her morning shift at the KFC restaurant in Ho, Volta Region, will end at 2 p.m., leaving her enough time to go to her polling centre and cast her vote.

The 18.7 million voters will elect a new president in the gold rich country. While there are 12 candidates in the race, experts believe that it is between Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia of the NPP and former President John Mahama of the NDC.

Meanwhile, there is also the election of 276 members of the parliament.

“I will definitely vote after my shift. Most of the guys taking over at 2 p.m. have also gone out to vote,” Ms Asaah said in response to a question from this reporter.

Ghana’s electoral system allows free movement on election days. Shops across the country remain open, and roads are busy with vehicles.

Despite this, over 79 per cent of registered voters cast their votes in the last elections in 2022.

PREMIUM TIMES monitored electoral activities in the Eastern and Volta regions. Most polling stations opened by 7 a.m., as mandated by law, and will remain open until 5 p.m., when polls close.

At polling centre E011901, located at the Pentecost Church, Frankkadua Agudzame in Asuogyaman District, Eastern Region, voting commenced at 7:08 a.m.

In all the polling centres visited across the two regions, none started voting later than 7:10 a.m. This gives voters a 10-hour window to cast their votes.

PWD-Friendly Polling

The ongoing electoral process appears considerate of persons with disabilities, as many polling centres are located in open spaces with no barriers to access.

The majority of polling units visited by PREMIUM TIMES are in open areas, such as schools, motor parks, and government buildings.

In addition to accessibility, the use of tactile jackets to assist visually-impaired voters has made the voting process easier for the blind.

A tactile voting device enables a visually impaired person to mark a ballot paper in secret. This plastic device is attached to the ballot paper and consists of several flaps, each covering one of the boxes on the paper.

Each flap has a raised number, embossed in black, corresponding to the box it covers. The number stands out against the white background of the ballot paper and can be identified by touch.

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Once the voter knows which number corresponds to their preferred candidate or option, they lift the relevant flap to locate the correct box and make their mark.

Most candidates in the election are also campaigning with numbers corresponding to their position on the ballot. For instance, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) is number eight on the ballot, so most of its campaign posters feature the figure “eight.” Similarly, the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) is number 1, and its campaign slogan prominently features “1.”

The biometric verification devices used for accrediting voters have been functioning efficiently in most polling centres visited.