Former Minister of Education Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum has joined the several individuals vying for the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) presidential candidacy slated for January 2026. Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum picked up the party’s nomination forms on Thursday, August 14.

While addressing the media on Thursday, Dr. Adutwum expressed confidence that party members will elect him as their presidential candidate for the general elections scheduled for 2028.

If elected, Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum, who served under former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo as Education Minister, plans to make Ghana a better place for all. "We are on track, and by the grace of God, my party, I believe, will vote for me and make me the flagbearer of the NPP. And after that, I will be on the journey to the promised land — the land that our nation has been yearning for years, that our nation will become a prosperous one. Our nation will wage war against poverty and win. That the poverty and deprivation will be over.”

"That is what the campaign of 2028 will be about — a country that hadn’t been independent for many years. We've done our very best. From the first president to the current president, each one of them has done something great. Yet, we have a lot to do. And that is what Adutwum's presidency will be about," he added.

In a related development, over 400 youth organisers of the party on Wednesday, August 13, picked up flagbearer nomination forms on behalf of the former Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia. On August 5, Kennedy Agyapong (former Member of Parliament for Assin Central) officially picked up nomination forms to contest the party's primary elections.

Several prominent party figures have already publicly signalled their intent to contest, including Bryan Acheampong (Member of Parliament for Abetifi), former party General Secretary Kwabena Agyapong, and Senior Lecturer at Kumasi Technical University, Dr. Edmund Oppong-Peprah.

The NPP, on Tuesday, July 29, opened nominations for its 2028 flagbearer position. Aspirants will pay a whopping amount of GHC100,000 for nomination forms and GHC500,000 as a filing fee.

Nomination forms may be obtained from the Office of the General Secretary at the Party Headquarters, Asylum Down, from now until August 28. An aspiring presidential candidate shall be required to pay a development fee as determined by the National Council.

This comes after the opposition party officially released its presidential primaries timetable on Friday, July 25, following a National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting held at the Alisa Hotel in Accra. The statement informed interested candidates to pick up their forms by Tuesday.

It also noted that by August 28, all forms should have been submitted, as the party is expected to move into the vetting mode by September, approximately a month after they close the flagbearer nomination.

“Nominations will be opened on July 29, 2025, for all persons interested in contesting for the flagbearer to pick their forms. Vetting will be conducted from September 15 to 22, and the election to choose our flagbearer will be held on January 31, 2026.”

The National Executive Committee has urged both candidates and supporters to uphold the tenets of the party to maintain peace and harmony. “All aspirants and their supporters are reminded to uphold the values of the party and refrain from divisive conduct during the campaign period.”

Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, former vice president and the NPP’s flagbearer in the 2024 election, is widely considered the frontrunner, followed by the former Assin North Member of Parliament, Kennedy Agyapong, a former contender for the flagbearer primaries.

The earlier-than-usual opening of nominations for the flagbearer position, according to the party, forms part of their restructuring and strategic measures taken to ensure transparency and discipline in the selection process, as well as to give ample time to the flagbearer to engage members, stakeholders, and other members of the international community to set the required tone for the 2028 elections.

The nominations’ opening comes about six months ahead of the party’s presidential primaries, scheduled for January 31, 2026. Ahead of the 2016 general elections, the NPP opened nominations in March 2014 and held flagbearer elections on October 18, 2014, marking 25 months ahead of the elections.

However, in 2025, they have declared nomination openings in July and a primary set for January 2026, which is about 35 months ahead of the presidential elections. According to the party’s constitution, it is required that at least six months’ notice be given ahead of the primaries.

The NPP's presidential race is expected to be an intense one this time around. Kennedy Agyapong’s position as the strongest contender for Dr. Bawumia has been complemented by a recent survey conducted by Sanity Africa, a Pan-African civil society organisation, between April and June 2025, which showed Kennedy Agyapong leading with 51.4% delegate support, ahead of Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, who had 42.2%.

Ahead of the flagbearership race, Ken Agyapong has received prophecies about his victory. Ahead of the last presidential primaries two years ago, the four candidates — Dr. Bawumia, Kennedy Agyapong, former Food and Agriculture Minister Dr. Owusu Akoto Afriyie, and former Member of Parliament for Mampong, Francis Addai-Nimoh — who vied for the flagbearer position, signed an agreement stating that, following the primaries, "candidates will accept election primary results, promote peace and cohesion."

In the NPP's previous presidential primaries in November 2023, Dr. Bawumia secured 61.47% of the total votes from nearly 200,000 NPP delegates, emerging as the victor, while Ken Agyapong secured about 37.41%. Dr. Bawumia held a meeting with his closest contender at his residence in Accra.

After being announced as the NPP's 2024 presidential candidate, Kennedy Agyapong threw his support behind Dr. Bawumia. “So, party members, we should put everything behind us, and let’s unite this party… I believe we can break the eight, and that’s what I’ve been preaching,” Kennedy Agyapong said.

Dr. Bawumia lost the 2024 presidential election. John Dramani Mahama, who ran on the ticket of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), bagged 6,328,397 valid votes, representing 56.55%, and Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia secured 4,657,304 votes, representing 41.61%.

Meanwhile, ahead of the pending flagbearership race, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has received backing from 268 former Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs), who visited him in June to pledge their support.

“Following extensive consultations with all aspirants, and after a thorough assessment of their vision, competence, and commitment to the NPP’s progress, we are convinced beyond any doubt that Dr. Bawumia is the best candidate to lead the NPP to victory in 2028,” the MMDCEs said in their statement after the engagement.

“Our endorsement is not merely symbolic; it is a strategic and operational commitment. With 95% of us having previously served as constituency and regional executives — some for over 16 years — we possess an intimate understanding of the NPP’s structures, dynamics, and electoral needs. We will deploy this experience to ensure Dr. Bawumia’s message resonates in every corner of Ghana,” they added.

Also, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, on June 19, received 60 Members of Parliament from the New Patriotic Party (NPP), who announced their endorsement of his bid for the party's flagbearership position. The delegation ended up having an in-camera meeting with the 2024 flagbearer.

The delegation included former Finance Minister Mohammed Amin Adam; Member of Parliament for Ofoase Ayirebi, Kojo Oppong-Nkrumah; Member of Parliament for Akuapem North, Sammi Awuku; Techiman South legislator, Martin Adjei-Mensah Korsah; Habib Iddrisu, the Member of Parliament for Tolon; Member of Parliament for Assin South, Reverend John Ntim Fordjour; and Nana Adjei Baffour Awuah, the Member of Parliament for Manhyia South.