Akwatia By‑Election: NDC Holds Primaries Today to Elect Parliamentary Candidate
ACCRA, GHANA — The National Democratic Congress (NDC) is conducting parliamentary primaries across the Akwatia constituency today (August 4, 2025) to select its candidate for the upcoming September 2 by‑election, triggered by the sudden death of sitting NPP MP Ernest Yaw Kumi.
Primary Contestants & Party Procedures
Three aspirants are contesting the NDC nomination:
Henry Yiadom Boakye, former MP for Akwatia
Bernard Bediako Baidoo, current constituency secretary and legal practitioner
Erasmus Koney Ali, assembly member known locally as Asanka Poyoyoo
The timeline:
Nomination forms were available from July 28
Filing deadline: July 30
Vetting and balloting conducted on July 31
Primaries held on August 4, commencing at 7 a.m. and concluding at 4 p.m. across polling centers in the constituency.
By‑Election Context & Security Measures
The Electoral Commission officially scheduled the Akwatia by‑election for September 2, 2025, following Kumi’s death on July 7, 2025.
Interior Minister Mubarak Muntaka has assured enhanced security deployment in Akwatia, citing lessons learned from electoral violence at the Ablekuma North rerun, and urging preparedness for a peaceful by‑election.
Investigative Insight: Stakes and Political Significance
Akwatia was captured by the NPP in December 2024 after an intense electoral contest; its loss now leaves the seat vacant and highly contested.
Political analysts suggest that both parties are treating the by‑election as emblematic of Ghana’s democratic health, with NDC’s internal discipline and candidate unity critical ahead of facing the NPP’s consensus-chosen aspirant—Solomon Kwame Asumadu.
Source: My News Ghana
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