NPP Elects Flagbearer in January 2026, Dept. General Secretary Explains Decision for Early Primaries

• The opposition NPP has announced its presidential primaries will be held on January 31, 2026
• The move, according to the party, will allow qualified party members to officially declare their intentions to run for president
• According to the NPP's Deputy General Secretary, holding early primaries will give the winner ample time to campaign

The Deputy General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Haruna Mohammed, has explained that the party's decision to hold early presidential primaries is to give the winner enough time to campaign and engage stakeholders.

Speaking to Channel One TV, he also said the early primaries will allow the elected presidential candidate to gain traction with the international community.

“It is going to market the candidate enough with regards to us being able to get in contact with the international community, the business community, and the various stakeholders across the length and breadth of the world. We would get ample time to explain our policy and be able to tackle and put the government on its toes. Remember, we have only 88 members of parliament, so we need to have somebody who can get this done,” he reportedly said.

This follows a decision by the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the NPP to hold its presidential primaries on January 31, 2026.

The decision was taken at the party's NEC meeting, which took place in Accra on Tuesday, June 17, 2025.

The NEC is probably the second-highest decision-making body in the NPP, comprising members from across the country.

Bawumia, Ken and Bryan declare presidential ambitions

The decision by the NEC means that qualified members of the party who wish to lead the NPP into the 2028 elections as presidential candidates could now declare their intentions.

Already, signs are clear that former Vice President and 2024 presidential candidate of the NPP, Alhaji Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, would contest the primaries in 2026.

Dr Bawumia has been travelling across the country, engaging Ghanaians and thanking the party faithful for their support in the 2024 elections.

Aside from him, a six-term Member of Parliament (MP) and former presidential aspirant, Kennedy Agyapong, is also lacing up his boots to contest the elections.

Bryan Acheampong, the MP for Abetifi and the immediate past Minister for Agriculture, has also declared his intentions to contest the NPP's presidential primaries.

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Reactions to NPP setting presidential primaries date

Ghanaians on social media have reacted to the NPP's National Executive Committee (NEC) decision to hold early presidential primaries.

YEN.com.gh compiled a few of the reactions below:

@Samuel Vorlashie said:

"Good idea, but "the battle is the Lord's" I believe God has rejected some group of people as leaders of this nation, no matter how smart or hard they work."

@Vcky Marcus also said:

"No, they want to use the establishment to forestall their candidate."

@Philip Donkor commented:

"I'm confused here. Is there a timeline for the election of polling station executives up to national executives before the presidential primaries? Or do they intend to conduct the presidential primaries before the elections? These guys should be careful lest they collapse what is left of our party."

NPP supporters hail Bawumia as solid candidate

In a related development, YEN.com.gh reported that Dr Mahamudu Bawumia was celebrated by some NPP supporters at the NEC meeting on Tuesday.

The NPP supporters expressed their strong resolve to elect him as the party’s presidential candidate for the 2028 election.

Dr Bawumia thanked the supporters for their kind words and went round to shake hands with each of them.

Proofreading by Samuel Gitonga, copy editor at YEN.com.gh.

Source: YEN.com.gh