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21st January 2026 8:47:56 AM
4 mins readBy: Phoebe Martekie Doku

Individuals seeking to contest the Ayawaso East parliamentary primary in the Greater Accra Region are required to pay a filing fee of GH₵40,000.
The amount is intended to help the party cover the cost of organising the primaries, including administrative and logistical expenses. This was disclosed in a press release issued by the party on January 20, 2026.
Aspirants are also required to purchase nomination forms at a cost of GH₵5,000 and submit the completed forms to the party’s Greater Accra Regional Office. Meanwhile, female aspirants and persons living with disabilities (PLWDs) will benefit from a 50 per cent reduction in the filing fee.
Parliamentary by-election will be held on Tuesday, March 3, 2026.The election has become necessary following the death of the area’s Member of Parliament, Hon. Mahama Naser Toure, which has left the seat vacant.
This will be the third time the country has had a rerun of elections after the 2024 general polls. Ablekuma North had remained the only constituency in Ghana without a sitting MP due to unresolved disagreements over the outcome of the parliamentary vote.
In a statement dated January 16, 2026, and signed by the EC’s Deputy Chairman for Operations, Samuel Tettey, the Commission explained how interested persons can contest the election.
Nominations will be accepted at the EC’s Ayawaso East Municipal Office in North Ridge from Monday, February 9, to Wednesday, February 11, 2026. Submissions will be taken between 9:00 a.m. and 12:00 p.m., and from 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. each day.
Aspiring candidates can download nomination forms from the EC’s website, www.ec.gov.gh/forms, starting Friday, January 16, 2026. Completed forms must be submitted in four copies and can be presented by the candidate, or by their proposer or seconder during the nomination period.
Each candidate must be supported by a proposer and a seconder who are registered voters in Ayawaso East, along with eighteen other registered voters from the constituency. Candidates are also required to submit two recent passport-size photographs with a red background.
A filing fee must be paid as part of the process. General candidates are to pay GH¢10,000, while female candidates and persons with disabilities will pay a reduced fee of GH¢7,500. The fee is non-refundable.
The EC stated that the by-election is being held in accordance with Article 112(5) of the 1992 Constitution, which mandates an election to be conducted when a parliamentary seat becomes vacant.
The Commission has called on the public to take note of the information as it works to ensure a free, fair, and transparent by-election.
Meanwhile, controversies surrounding the Kpandai parliamentary seat have received a reaction from the Supreme Court. On Tuesday, December 16, the Supreme Court ordered that the parliamentary rerun election in the area, scheduled for Tuesday, December 30, be suspended until further notice.
The legal team of New Patriotic Party (NPP) parliamentary candidate Matthew Nyindam has also been directed by the Supreme Court to follow due process in serving the National Democratic Congress (NDC) candidate, Daniel Nsala Wakpal. Meanwhile, the next hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, January 13, 2026.
A couple of months ago, the Member of Parliament (MP) for the Kpandai constituency, Mathew Nyindam, filed an application challenging the recent High Court ruling on the 2024 parliamentary elections in the area.
Earlier this year, the former Member of Parliament and NDC parliamentary candidate for Kpandai, Daniel Nsala Wakpal, submitted a petition to the Tamale High Court challenging the results of the 2024 parliamentary election in the constituency.
According to the petitioner, the Kpandai parliamentary election was marred by irregularities in the voting and collation processes. He argued that Pink Sheets from many polling stations were not accurate or consistent.
He stated: “The parliamentary election held in the Kpandai constituency on 7th December 2024 was not conducted in compliance with Regulations 39 of the Public Elections Regulations, 2020 (CI 127) and the principles laid down by Regulations 39, and that the said non-compliance affected the results of the elections.
“The declaration and publication of the parliamentary election results held in the Kpandai constituency on 7th December 2024 were not made in compliance with Regulations 43 of the Public Elections Regulations, 2020 (C.I 127) and the principles laid down by Regulations 43, and that the said non-compliance affected the entire results of the parliamentary elections in the Kpandai constituency.”
However, Mathew Nyindam has argued that “The Parliamentary Election Petition filed by the 1st Interested Party on 25th January 2025, in respect of the Parliamentary Election held at the Kpandai Constituency on 7th December 2024, was invalid and could not have properly invoked the jurisdiction of the High Court, Commercial Division, Tamale.”
In view of this, the Electoral Commission (EC) on Friday, July 11, held a rerun election in 19 polling stations in Ablekuma North to provide constituents with a representative. Ewurabena Aubynn polled 34,090 votes to beat the NPP’s Akua Afriyie, who secured 33,881 votes.
On December 10, 2024, three days after the national polls, the EC declared Ewurabena Aubynn of the NDC the winner of the Ablekuma North parliamentary seat, defeating the NPP’s Nana Akua Owusu Afriyieh.
However, the EC later revoked the announcement, revealing that results from 62 of the 281 polling stations had not been included in the initial collation.
Efforts to restart the collation in January 2025 were disrupted by multiple challenges. These included interruptions due to the submission of unverified Pink Sheets and a violent intrusion at the collation centre that heightened security concerns.
After extensive deliberations, the Electoral Commission in July announced that it would hold a rerun election because the 19 scanned polling station results used for the collation, though approved by agents of both political parties, were not verified by the presiding officers responsible for those polling stations.
The EC arrived at this decision after meeting with representatives of the NDC and the NPP on Tuesday, July 1.
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