The Supreme Court has dismissed John Mahama’s challenge to the 2020 presidential election results in the election petition trial.
Akufo-Addo defeated Mahama in the said election to secure another four-year term; collecting 51.302% of the votes cast against the latter’s 47.359%.
The votes difference between the two candidates stood at 517, 231, representing a four percentage point, one of the highest since 1996.
Presenting the court’s judgment on Thursday, March 4, 2021, the Chief Justice, Justice Anin Yeboah said President Nana Akufo-Addo obtained more than 50% of the total valid votes.
He further added the chairperson of the Electoral Commission (EC), Jean Mensa, had the right to make corrections to her errors during the declaration on December 9, 2021.
According to him, from the cross-examination of Johnson Asiedu Nketia, the petitioner’s first witness, there is no doubt that the petitioner knew the right figures.
He said the petitioner’s submission that there was no winner in the election does not find favour before the court and that the threshold to declare a president should be based on the total valid votes cast and not the total vote cast.
“The petitioner did not demonstrate in any way how the errors affected the declaration of the election…We have therefore no reason to order a re-run [of the election]. We accordingly dismiss the petition,” he said.
Source: Ghanaarticles.com