Newly elected NPP Third Vice Chairperson Nana Akomea says he paid little attention to opinion polls ahead of the party’s national executive elections.

He said direct engagement with delegates gave candidates a better opportunity to assess their chances.

“So I didn’t pay much heed to the polls because you are meeting the electorate directly.”

Nana Akomea said the NPP election was different from a national election, in which candidates cannot personally engage millions of voters.

“This is not a national election of about 14, 15 million people, which you cannot meet directly, except maybe through mass media, social media, and so on.”

He said candidates were able to meet delegates directly in relatively small groups and assess their reactions to their messages.

“This one, you are meeting the delegates directly. Each constituency had about 19. When you are meeting five constituencies or six cons, you are looking at about 70, 80, 90 people, and so you are meeting them directly, eyeball to eyeball.”

Akomea also cautioned candidates against letting campaign paraphernalia distract them from engaging with delegates.

“Don’t let T-shirts come between you and them. Don’t let them focus on caps and T-shirts and paraphernalia.”

He said direct interaction also allowed candidates to determine whether their messages were resonating.

“You don’t need the polls because you are meeting the people directly, and you can know from their reaction if your message resonates with them.”

Despite his confidence, Akomea finished third in the election. He admitted the result was not what he expected.

“I was expected to be first or second, not third.”

He said the outcome disappointed him, although he had anticipated a difficult contest.

“Yes, it disappointed me a little, but I knew it was going to be tough.”

Akomea said the race was extremely close among the leading candidates.

“It’s very close. The top four: 2900-something, 2900-something, 2900-something, 3000-something. It’s very close, very tight.”

He also pointed to Kojo Bamba’s campaign message as a key factor in the result.

“Bamba’s message was clever, very clever. His message was different.”

According to Akomea, several leading candidates had largely similar campaign messages centred on experience and years of service to the party.

“Basically, that was our message.”

He said Bamba instead presented himself as someone who would focus on protecting delegates and the electoral process.

“Bamba’s message was that these people—they’ve served the party for a long time. I don’t intend to compete with them; what I want to give you is your security. security.”

He said Bamba urged delegates to support experienced candidates while giving him the role of protecting the ballot and the delegates.

“So they will do the work, and I’ll just protect the ballot and protect you.”