One person was shot on election day in Ghana

As voting continues in Ghana’s national elections, the police say four men have been arrested following an incident that left one person dead and another injured.

This happened at a polling station in the northern town of Yankpala, where the police said one of the members of parliament tried to lodge a complaint but was blocked by supporters of the ruling party.

Soldiers have been sent there in armored vehicles to calm the atmosphere.

Elsewhere, election day was held peacefully, with some Ghanaians lining up before dawn to make sure they cast their ballots.

The debt crisis and the high cost of living mean the economy is high on the minds of many voters.

The West African country is guaranteed to have a new president as Nana Akufo-Addo steps down after reaching the legal limit of two terms in office.

But he may be replaced by a familiar face, if former President John Mahama succeeds in his bid to return to the NDC party.

His main rival is expected to be Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia, who will be the first Muslim leader in the country if he succeeds in the ruling NPP party.

Other candidates include Nana Kwame Bediako, a businessman who is popular with young voters and Alan Kyerematen, who defected from the ruling party NPP last year.

They asked 19 million Ghanaians to register to vote.

Although Ghana recently introduced strict laws that will increase the number of women in politicsonly one woman is in the running for the presidency – Nana Akosua Sarpong Frimpomaa of the Convention People’s Party (CPP).

The only female presidential candidate in this election – Akua Donkor of the Ghana Freedom Party – died in October. However, his name is yet to be written on the ballot papers because the person who was chosen to succeed him had withdrawn.

Saturday’s general election also sees voters in 275 constituencies across the country choosing their members of parliament.

Since the return of multi-party politics in Ghana in 1992, only candidates from the National Democratic Congress (NDC) or the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) have won the presidency.

No team has won more than two times in a row.

Voters have a 10-hour window on Saturday to vote – 07:00-17:00 GMT.

Ghana’s international borders are closed until Sunday evening, a move the authors describe as unusual.

The election results will be announced within three days.

To win in the first round, a presidential candidate must receive more than 50% of the vote. If that doesn’t happen, the two candidates will run for a second vote to be held at the end of December.

Voting for the first time, Serwaa Yeboah Joshebeth, 18, told the BBC “it is important that you vote to choose the best for your country”.

This newly graduated student wants to see other job opportunities, “not just me but others who need them [too].”

Kojo Yeboah, 95, agrees.

“The next leader must focus on education and youth jobs,” a retired university employee told the BBC outside a polling station in the city of Kumasi.

“I am already benefiting from government grants at my age,” he added.

As the campaigns draw to a close on Friday, Bawumia said of his main rival: “What is clear is that despite the challenges we have had, we have done better than the John Dramani Mahama government.

Although Mahama told his supporters “it is a choice between the Ghana we have today and the Ghana we want together. A Ghana of opportunity, success, and justice for all.”

Ghanaians have been hit hard by inflation in recent years, reaching 54.1% by 2022. Although it has decreased, many thousands of people have been pushed into poverty and the standard of living has suffered. said the World Bank.

That same year, Ghana defaulted on its debts again The government is in long talks with international lenders to try to restructure the debt.

Unemployment is also high – especially among young people, whose opinions can have a big impact on election results.

Additional reports by Favor Nunoo in Accra and Damian Zane in London