The incumbent Vice President and current presidential candidate of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), Dr Mahamadu Bawumia, has called on Ghanaians at an event in Cape Coast three months before the presidential and parliamentary elections on 7 December 2024 to refrain from violence and divisive rhetoric during the election campaign. In view of the tensions in the country, he urgently warned against exacerbating the situation, stating that free elections are a cornerstone of democracy, a privilege to shape the nation that should never be taken for granted and must be protected.

Peace, tolerance and respect should be embraced by all, engage in constructive dialogue and ‘celebrate our differences as a source of strength’, he continued. In previous elections in Ghana, there were isolated incidents of violence when political opponents accused each other of rigging.

The Ghanaian Catholic Bishops' Conference has also called for respectful and decent behaviour in the political debate. Ghana is entering a decisive phase of its democratic journey and all groups and individuals involved are called upon to fulfil their ‘collective responsibility to ensure a peaceful, transparent and fair electoral process’, the bishops added. The political parties must ‘conduct their ongoing campaigns with respect for democratic values and the dignity of the individual’.

According to a recent representative survey, 85% of Ghanaians rate the country's economy as poor, 72% rate their personal living conditions as fairly poor to poor, 55% say they have lost confidence in the Ghanaian parliament and 53% have lost confidence in the presidency. An alarming 22% of respondents are even in favour of a military dictatorship.

In recent times, violent clashes between party members of the ruling NPP and the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) have become more frequent in various regions of the country.