The Managing Editor of the Daily Dispatch Newspaper, Ben Ephson has predicted that there will be an increase in the number of rejected ballots in the December 7, elections.

Pollster Ben Ephson explained that this is due to the placement of presidential and parliamentary candidates.

According to him, political parties are likely to lose votes through rejected ballots if an aspiring parliamentary candidate’s number does not tally with its presidential candidate.

“This time the unofficial rejected ballot is going to be very big unfortunately if your presidential candidate is number four and you the parliamentary candidate you are number 3.

He also highlighted the significance of the placement on the ballot paper, saying it helps to determine how easy to market a candidate.

The pollster's comment comes after the two major political parties in the country - NPP and NDC - took first and second spot on the ballot sheet respectively for the December 7, polls.

Commenting on the issue of the increase of rejected ballot, the Deputy Local Government and Rural Development Minister, Osei Bonsu Amoah, noted that there is a need for public education to avoid the incidence of an increase in rejected ballots.

“The most critical thing is education on how to even vote, we take these things for granted but people do not know how to vote.”

He also noted that the placement of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and New Patriotic Party (NPP) on the ballot sheet could raise some challenges resulting in a rejected ballot.

He explained that the electorates during voting could ignorantly use the ink to spread into the other candidate’s box, rendering it useless.

For him, it would have been safer if the two parties had some space and margin.

“The challenge is that most people vote for NPP or NDC, so if we were separated it would have been easier than if we were together.”

He advised voters to handle ballot papers with vigilance while voting for their candidates in other to avoid the spread of ink into another candidate’s box.