The Member of Parliament for Manhyia South constituency, Nana Agyei Baffour Awuah, says he is not surprised Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia’s votes dropped in the NPP’s Presidential Primary.

During an interview on Nhyira FM’s breakfast show, Kuro Yi Mu Nsem, with Barima Kofi Dawson, the lawmaker attributed the drop in votes to the intensified competition.

“Bawumia’s votes in the flagbearer race slipped from 61.4% in 2023 to 56.47% in 2026, and I am not surprised because it is a sign of how tough and competitive the contest was,” he said.

He described the NPP’s 2026 presidential contest as the most fiercely contested primary in Ghana’s Fourth Republic history, unmatched by any other party’s internal elections.

Nana Agyei Baffour Awuah urged the party members to take pride in the outcome of the primary, noting it has thrown up three strong frontrunners with solid ideas and job-creation plans that can be leveraged for the 2028 general elections.

“Every NPP member should be proud of how the presidential primary played out. Of course, there were some heated words thrown around during the campaign, but that is expected in every political contest. We will definitely learn from it and tighten things up moving forward.

“We have got three strong frontrunners: Dr. Bawumia with very rich ideas, together with Kennedy Agyapong and Bryan Acheampong with a job creation mindset. If we package all that, we have got a winning narrative to take to the Ghanaian people ahead of the 2028 general election,” he stated.

When asked if Dr. Bawumia is the Ghanaian electorate’s top pick, he pointed out that it was Ghanaians themselves who were urging party delegates to choose him as their flagbearer.

“Before the primary, Ghanaians in marketplaces, on radio, and everywhere were saying they will only vote for NPP in 2028 if Bawumia leads the ticket. They emphasised their decision to opt out of the 2024 election had nothing to do with Bawumia being the flagbearer.”

Nana Agyei also pointed out that the party’s base is gaining steam: “Things are looking up, and they are feeling more energised”.

Comparing Bawumia’s chances against any candidate the NDC puts up in 2028, he noted that historically, the ruling party normally struggled to secure a second term.

“Ghana’s trend since 1992 shows incumbent governments struggle to secure a second term; it nearly lost it, so the ruling party needs to gear up ahead of 2028,” he noted.