Ballot Position Not Indicator Of Election Victory – UG Senior Lecturer

A political marketing analyst and senior lecturer at the University of Ghana Business School (UGBS), Kob Mensah has explained that although the position of a party on a ballot paper matters a lot, it is not a signal of election victory.

The presidential candidates balloted for positions on the ballot paper on Tuesday, October 20, 2020, which saw the two major political parties, New Patriotic Party (NPP) and National Democratic Congress (NDC) landing the first and second slots respectively.

Speaking on Eyewitness News, Mr. Mensah noted that the issue of the position on the ballot paper will matter more to smaller political parties who are now looking to amass a following.

He added that the position of these parties could sometimes sway the minds of some undecided voters.

“We can’t say that the position is the sole reason for the victory or loss of a political party or candidate. But when it comes to the smaller political parties, because they do not have a following, for example, their position on the ballot is important because there are people who may not necessarily have an idea of how they want to vote and could go for them based on that.”

The political marketing analyst made reference to ex-president John Agyekum Kufuor who created a great campaign that won the election despite his position on the ballot.

“In 2000, President John Kufuor actually demonstrated that, perhaps, the position on the ballot did not matter greatly when he campaigned on the case of “aseɛ hɔ” for example, and a lot of people really bought into that. We can’t say that the position is the sole reason for the victory or loss of a political party or candidate.”

Mr. Mensah added that although it is not the sole indicator, there are studies that suggest that the position of the ballot matters in the electoral effect