The Electoral Commission's decision to count votes cast for the late Akua Donkor, founder and former flagbearer of the Ghana Freedom Party, as rejected ballots has been described as unconstitutional by Prof. Stephen Kwaku Asare, a Fellow in Public Law and Justice at CDD-Ghana.In a statement, the Commission noted that "votes cast in favour of Madam Akua Donkor will not be added to the Valid Votes Cast.

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" This directive, according to the Electoral Commission, has been communicated to its permanent and temporary staff as well as agents of the presidential candidates.The decision follows Akua Donkor's passing after the Commission had almost completed printing ballot papers for the 2024 presidential election. To save costs, the EC decided not to print new ballot papers, retaining the late candidate's image and party logo on the ballot.

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The move has sparked criticism from some stakeholders, with Prof. Asare arguing that the current constitutional instrument (C.I) governing elections does not provide for rejecting votes cast for a deceased candidate."Declaring such votes as rejected would go beyond the regulation's scope, necessitating either a statutory amendment to include this scenario or a judicial interpretation to expand the regulation's application," he said.Prof.

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Asare emphasized the broader implications of such a decision, stating that if the votes were counted as valid, it would increase the total number of valid votes cast, subsequently raising the threshold required for a candidate to secure a majority."This could disadvantage other candidates, as the votes for the deceased candidate become 'wasted,' contributing to no living candidate's tally," he explained.

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Despite the EC's justification of cost-saving, its decision has also faced resistance from political parties, with some describing it as unconstitutional.

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