Electoral Justice Under Ghana's Fourth Republic

Abstract

Election may be contentious and disputes may arise at any stage of an electoral process. The African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance requires State Parties to establish and strengthen national mechanisms that redress election-related disputes in a timely manner. The practice of electoral justice under Ghana’s Fourth Republic has made room for aggrieved persons in the electoral process to seek redress as opposed to resorting to violence as a means to resolving conflicts. Electoral justice under Ghana’s Fourth Republic has mainly been by court adjudication. The courts have exercised activism in electoral judicial review to bring finality to pre-electoral disputes to safeguard the electoral process. They have thus ‘facilitated ... the continual process’ of succession in Ghana’s democratisation process. However, the incessant spate of court litigation in the ninth hour of elections particularly as occurred during the 2016 elections created tensions and uneasiness, stalling the electoral process. This chapter argues that electoral justice could be strengthened if Alternate Electoral Dispute Resolution (AEDR) structures are also utilised to complement the courts adjudication especially that of pre-election disputes. It advances that the effectiveness of AEDR to a large extent depends on the political actors and also the Electoral Commission’s stance towards an amicable peaceful resolution of electoral disputes.