An Accra High Court has dismissed an application filed by Nana Akua Owusu Afriyie, a parliamentary aspirant in the Ablekuma North Constituency, seeking an injunction against the Electoral Commission’s (EC) directive to rerun elections in 19 polling stations.
The court ruled that the application lacked sufficient merit to warrant halting the EC’s decision, which came in the wake of disputes and irregularities reported during the recent New Patriotic Party (NPP) parliamentary primaries in the constituency.
In her application, Madam Afriyie, a former Member of Parliament for Ablekuma North, argued that the EC’s order for a rerun was unfair and procedurally flawed.
She claimed it would infringe on her political rights and undermine the legitimacy of the results from the earlier primaries, in which she claimed victory.
Legal counsel for the NPP, Gary Nimako, argued that the EC’s decision contradicted both legal precedent and its own prior communications. He pointed out that following a January court ruling, the EC publicly confirmed on several occasions—including a January 27, 2025, press release and a briefing to Parliament by Deputy Chair Dr. Bossman Asare—that only three polling station results remained uncollated.
Nimako contended that the directive to rerun elections in 19 polling stations was not only baseless but also undermined the authority of the court.
He further stressed that all polling station results, or “pink sheets,” had already been endorsed by party agents and presiding officers, thereby rendering a rerun unwarranted and unlawful.
“A rerun can only occur if there is a tie,” he argued, referencing Regulation 42 of the Public Elections Regulations, 2020 (C.I. 127), which prescribes a rerun only in the case of an equality of votes, a condition the EC has not claimed.
However, the EC maintained that the rerun was necessary to uphold transparency and credibility, citing reports of voting irregularities and unresolved challenges from polling agents in the affected centres.
In delivering the ruling, Justice Abature stated that the court could not interfere with the administrative duties of the EC unless there was clear evidence of abuse of discretion or breach of law.
“After a careful and painstaking reading of the applicant’s motion paper, affidavit in support, statement of case as filed, as well as the supplementary affidavit… the application for injunction against the respondent is dismissed as unmeritorious,” he said.
The decision clears the way for the EC to proceed with the scheduled rerun in the 19 polling stations.
However, the NPP has categorically rejected the EC’s decision to rerun parliamentary elections in Ablekuma North, asserting that their candidate, Akua Afriyie, won the seat fairly and decisively.
Addressing journalists in Accra, the party’s General Secretary, Justin Frimpong Kodua, declared that the NPP possesses “undeniable evidence” confirming its electoral victory and will not participate in what it views as an illegitimate rerun.
“We have our undeniable evidence to clearly show that we won the Ablekuma North parliamentary election,” Kodua stated at a press briefing held at the NPP parliamentary candidate’s office.
He said “Under no circumstances will we be intimidated. Under no circumstances will we be coerced to go for a rerun.”
Kodua emphasised that the party would resist any attempt to overturn the declared will of the electorate, reaffirming the NPP’s claim to a legitimate and conclusive win in the hotly contested seat.
The Ablekuma North parliamentary contest has been fraught with controversy since election day, with the collation of results and subsequent declarations being hotly disputed.
While the Electoral Commission initially declared the National Democratic Congress (NDC) candidate, Awurabena Aubynn, as the winner, the NPP promptly contested that outcome.
According to figures cited by the NPP, their candidate, Akua Afriyie, secured 34,613 votes, while the NDC’s Awurabena Aubynn polled 34,199 votes—a margin of 414 votes.
The party claims this tally was based on verified pink sheets and the official records from polling centres across the constituency.
