Chief Justice Nominee, Paul Baffoe-Bonnie, has suggested that Ghana’s general elections be rescheduled to November 7, rather than the customary December 7, to provide adequate time for the resolution of election petitions prior to the inauguration of a new government.
He expressed these views during his vetting by Parliament’s Appointments Committee on Monday, November 10, 2025, addressing concerns regarding the protracted nature of electoral dispute resolutions.
At present, elections in Ghana are held on December 7, with the new government being inaugurated on January 7 — a one-month interval that effectively renders it nearly impossible for a dissatisfied political party to have its petition resolved while the new administration is already in power.
Justice Baffoe-Bonnie stated that advancing the election date by one month would enable both political parties and the judiciary to address disputes in a timely and transparent manner.
“Following the election petition, we concluded that it should be feasible to resolve petitions before January 7, which is the day of inauguration. The most viable suggestion was to conduct elections on November 7 or 8,” he clarified.
He further explained that if elections were held in early November, results could be announced by November 10, allowing approximately 57 days — from mid-November to early January — to manage any potential legal challenges.
“If we adhere to the 42-day timeframe stipulated by CI 99, petitions can be filed, responded to, and adjudicated within that duration,” he added.
Justice Baffoe-Bonnie also promoted the implementation of electronic service for court documents, contending that it could significantly reduce delays associated with the manual delivery of processes to respondents.
“Every originating process must be served personally on the respondent. However, in today’s digital age, we can utilize digital addresses or phone numbers for online communication. If petitions are served electronically, it could take three days instead of a week,” he remarked.
He stressed that with these modifications, all procedures could be finalized by November 30, enabling trials to wrap up within a fortnight — thereby guaranteeing fairness and efficiency in the resolution of electoral disputes.
