Political Scientist and Head of the Centre for European Studies at the University of Ghana, Dr Kwame Asah-Asante, has argued that sympathy no longer influences electoral outcomes in Ghana, as constituents increasingly prioritise fiscal support and tangible development.

Commenting on the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) defeat in Tuesday’s Akwatia by-election, Dr Asah-Asante noted that the party’s appeal for sympathy votes following the death of MP Ernest Kumi did not resonate with voters.

"The issue of sympathy vote, you will record that the NPP's message was that, let us maintain the work of the late MP by honoring him, let us maintain his seat, sympathy. In the literature, sympathy is not one of the reasons why the people vote the way they do, it is bread and butter issue in this country," he said while discussing the outcome of the polls on Wednesday on JoyNews AM Show.

He stressed that the electorate now expects practical benefits rather than emotional appeals, emphasising that voters are drawn to candidates who can directly improve their livelihoods through financial support and development projects, rather than those who merely lament their circumstances.

"Were they sympathetic to the NPP in terms of the fact that we have lost the MP? No!. They shared in the grief of the family and we also associated with that but look, a hungry man is an angry man, he is looking for food and nothing more or nothing less. I am a farmer, I produce my corn and I am looking for a place to sell, and somebody promises me that, I will gravitate towards than to say that we have lost an MP so I should be sympathetic, so sympathy do not have a place in our political choices."

At the end of the polls on Tuesday, Legal practitioner Bernard Bediako Baidoo of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) has emerged victorious in the closely contested Akwatia by-election.

The private legal practitioner polled 18,199 votes (about 54%), marking a key breakthrough as the NDC reclaims the crucial swing seat from the New Patriotic Party (NPP).

Mr Baidoo's close contender, Solomon Kwame Asumadu of the NPP, polled 15,235, and Owusu Patrick of the Liberal Party of Ghana (LPG) garnered 82 votes.