‘What is trending is false’ – EC debunks viral post of gazetted 57.7% win for John Mahama

Claim: John Mahama wins 57.7% of gazetted 2024 presidential results

Source: Social media (X)

Verdict: False

Researched by Alfa Shaban

Social media has been buzzing with a viral claim that Ghana’s Electoral Commission (EC) has released the gazetted presidential results of the 2024 elections after compiling results from the nine (9) constituencies left out of the EC’s December 9 declaration of John Dramani Mahama as president-elect. 

On December 25, 2024, X accounts belonging to some prominent members of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), including a sitting Member of Parliament, a former deputy General Secretary,  a member of the national communications team, and a pro-NDC influencer, claimed the New Patriotic Party (NPP) candidate in the election, Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia recorded 38.2% while the NDC’s John Mahama recorded 57.7% per EC’s gazetted results.

Beatrice Annan’s post which read: “EC gazetted results NDC’s Mahama – 57.7%. NPP’s Bawumia – 38.2% 38% is an abysmal performance by every standard,” has been reshared 1,000 times, liked by 5,000 X users and had 253 comments with over 326,100 views. 

“Herh, fear God oo!! Just see what the Lord has done. Wooow what a win, what a gap? 2024 Election Final Results (per the Electoral Commission): NPP’s Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia: 38.2%, NDC’s John Dramani Mahama: 57.7%” as posted by  ex deputy General Secretary, Dr Peter Boamah Otokunor has gathered 1,000 likes, 162 reshares with 32 comments at the time of filing this report. 

This fact-check report seeks to verify the authenticity of the claim. 

Fact-check 

On December 9, 2024, the Electoral Commission (EC) of Ghana announced the winner of the 2024 presidential election, with EC chairperson Jean Mensa noting that president-elect John Dramani Mahama had secured 56.55% of votes as against 41.61% by Bawumia.

The EC boss clarified that the declaration of the presidential results was without figures from nine constituencies.  

“We have collated the presidential results from all 16 administrative regions, of which 267 of the 276 constituencies have been captured,” she said. 

“We have not been able to receive results from nine constituencies because our offices have been besieged by political party supporters, making it impossible to complete the collation process,” she added.

The following votes and percentages were given for the two major candidates as of December 9, 2024. 

Table 1 – Total number of votes and corresponding percentages as announced on December 9, 2024.

The EC’s most recent press conference was on December 24 but there was no mention of final presidential results. As of December 25, 2024, when the viral claim appeared on social media, the EC has yet to announce the results from the nine outstanding constituencies which means that the final presidential results are still pending.

GhanaFact contacted Dr Bossman Asare, Deputy Chairperson of the EC in charge of Corporate Affairs, over the viral claim of the ‘gazetted results.’

“What is trending is false,” he told us in a phone interview. “It is not true. We do not gazette with figures or percentages,” he said.

According to him, by law, the EC’s gazette for a presidential result only states that so and so has been validly elected as president after an election. 

He cited Article 63 (3) of the 1992 Constitution which states: “A person shall not be elected as President of Ghana unless at the presidential election the number of votes cast in his favour is more than fifty per cent of the total number of valid votes cast at the election.”

Verdict

From the above, the claims that the final 2024 presidential election results have been gazetted are False.