President John Mahama says on the back of his good works, he derserves an overwhelming re-election victory when polls open December 7.
The governing National Democratic Congress candidate, John Mahama, who pulled 50.63% in 2012 presidential elections appealed to Ghanaians to improve this margin and give him 60 percent of the votes.
‘I don’t want 50.7%. I want 59%, 58%, 60%” he said at a rally at Sewfi Wiaso in the Western region Monday.
He explained that a comprehensive victory will discourage the opposition from challenging the results in court as the New Patriotic Party (NPP) did in 2012.
Discussing president Mahama’s search for a massive endorsement, political analyst Joe Jackson told Joy News Monday, “if he won by 60% then it is landslide. I doubt that the election will be that wide in the margins. It will be a lot more closer than that”.
The highest any presidential candidate has obtained since Ghana’s return to democracy in 1992 was 58.4% for the NDC candidate Jerry John Rawlings.
Ghana’s electoral system requires that the winner must have 50% plus one, failure of which triggers a second round between the two leading candidates.
Ghana last went for a run-off in 2000 and 2008 elections, a prospect which the main rivals, the NPP and NDC are keen to avoid in 2016.
They have both predicted a ‘one touch victory’.
Out of three polls published in the media, only one poll has predicted a Mahama victory.
One published by Political scientists at the University of Ghana examined 23 swing constituencies and concluded a win for NPP Presidential candidate Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.
The UK-based Economic Intelligence Unit (EIU) has also said the Greater Accra region will swing to the NPP.
Ghanaian pollster and Editor of the Daily Dispatch Ben Ephson has a poll pointing to a one-touch victory for the incumbent.
Ben Ephson predicts Mr. Mahama will secure 52.4% while New Patriotic Party’s Nana Akufo-Addo will obtain 45.9% with the other parties claiming a meagre 1.7%.
President John Mahama has also said his own independent scientific “we have been doing our own scientific polling….the numbers are looking great and so I am confident that from what is being done scientifically, plus or minus any margin of error, we will make 50% plus”.
Join GhanaStar.com to receive daily email alerts of breaking news in Ghana. GhanaStar.com is your source for all Ghana News. Get the latest Ghana news, breaking news, sports, politics, entertainment and more about Ghana, Africa and beyond.
