Aspiring New Patriotic Party (NPP) flagbearer Dr Bryan Acheampong has offered a measured assessment of the party’s 2024 presidential performance under Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, urging the party to reflect carefully on the electoral numbers.

Speaking on PM Express, the former Member of Parliament for Abetifi said the election results present important lessons that should guide future decisions. He questioned the argument that Dr Bawumia’s long presence on the national political stage should automatically strengthen his case.

“Everything that you have ends at 41%,” he said, describing Dr Bawumia as “the most marketed” NPP candidate, having spent eight years as Vice President and another eight years as a running mate.

“Sixteen years that we marketed him, he had 41%,” he added.

Dr Acheampong contrasted this with former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s first presidential bid.

“We marketed Akufo-Addo for eight months; he had 49.7%,” he said, suggesting that the comparison raises legitimate questions about electoral outcomes. “So everything that you are saying, you are making his situation worse.”

He pointed to the party’s 2024 electoral map, noting that the results marked a difficult moment for the NPP.

“He couldn’t get seven regions of this country,” he said, adding that the party failed to win a single presidential constituency in regions such as Volta, Oti, Upper East, Upper West, Savannah and Bono East.

According to him, expectations ahead of the elections had been different.

“When we were supporting him in 2023, one of the beliefs was that if we presented him, he would hold the votes from the northern part of Ghana for us,” he said.
Dr Acheampong noted that the outcome did not align with that expectation. “Five of the regions that we did not win a single constituency… are from the northern half of Ghana.”

He also cited the party’s performance in other regions, including the Western, Central and Greater Accra regions, to underscore the scale of the challenge.
“These outcomes are what matter now,” he said. “Those attributes and the results of the elections are the ones that the delegates are passing a verdict on.”

Using a market analogy, Dr Acheampong explained his broader point: “If we market you for 16 years, and you come out with 41% and we market Akufo-Addo for eight months, and he gets 49.7%, then there’s a difference,” he said.

“The marketing did not yield the sales results, and people are going to change their product.”

Responding to comparisons with past NPP candidates who contested multiple times before winning, Dr Acheampong argued that the party’s history shows a consistent focus on performance.

“We’re talking about political performance,” he said, citing examples involving J.A. Kufuor and Nana Akufo-Addo, where improved electoral results informed decisions to offer candidates subsequent chances.

According to him, the NPP’s tradition has been to assess progress election after election.

“It was on performance,” he said, adding that growth in electoral numbers had always been a key factor in past decisions.

Dr Acheampong’s comments highlight an ongoing internal conversation within the NPP about learning from the 2024 elections and positioning the party strategically for the future.