Bawumia Trails NDC Front-Runners As Internal Cracks Refuse To Heal
By Stanley Assor
The latest polls by private polling organization, Global Info Analytics, has shown that certain defeat awaits the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP)’s presidential candidate for the 2028 elections, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, in a matchup against leading presidential materials of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC).
Pitching Dr. Bawumia against a random selection of seven NDC mock candidates, Global Info Analytics gauged the receptibility of voters in a June 2026 national poll and returned with a report that four out of the random NDC candidates would beat Dr. Bawumia.
These four incidentally are the NDC’s leading names for likely candidates. They are Finance Minister, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, NDC National Chairman, Mr. Johnson Asiedu Nketia, Education Minister, Haruna Iddrisu, and Vice President Prof. Naana Jane Opoku Agyemang.
Three other randomly selected persons from the NDC would however be dragged into a run-off by Dr. Bawumia. They are Chief of Staff, Dr. Julius Debrah, Agric Minister Eric Opoku, and Dr. Joshua Alabi.
The polls are coming at a time that the NPP has elected its presidential candidate for 2028 while the NDC is yet to hold its presidential primaries.
It is also coming at a time that the NPP is beset with serious intra-party divisions that has led to most of the party’s leading members taking a backseat, walking away or being expelled by the party.
Amidst all of the mess, Dr. Bawumia has failed to make a single policy proposition as well as indicate who his running mate will be.
The survey’s reported findings among first-time voters show Dr. Ato Forson leads Dr. Bawumia by 53 per cent to 29 per cent among first-time voters. Mr. Asiedu Nketia records 49 per cent against Dr. Bawumia’s 31 per cent, while Mr. Iddrisu leads 50 per cent to 28 per cent.
Professor Opoku-Agyemang leads Dr. Bawumia 37 per cent to 34 per cent among first-time voters, according to the figures supplied.
These results suggest that the eventual NDC flagbearer’s appeal among new voters could be an important factor in 2028. However, the figures should be treated as snapshots of stated preferences at the time of the survey, rather than definitive forecasts of how first-time voters will behave on election day.
In the reported head-to-head match-ups among all voters, Dr. Forson leads Dr. Bawumia 54 per cent to 34 per cent. Mr. Asiedu Nketia leads 49 per cent to 38 per cent, Mr. Iddrisu leads 51 per cent to 36 per cent, and Professor Opoku-Agyemang leads 44 per cent to 40 per cent.
In the other three match-ups, Dr. Bawumia leads Dr. Debrah 42 per cent to 40 per cent, Mr. Opoku 46 per cent to 31 per cent, and Dr. Alabi 45 per cent to 32 per cent.
Global InfoAnalytics conducted the survey from May 30 to June 12, 2026, sampling 8,784 voters across all 16 regions and 84 constituencies. The reported methodology included online responses and face-to-face interviews, although the supplied figures 1,302 online respondents and 7,484 face-to-face respondents add up to 8,786, two more than the stated sample size.
The findings offer an early indication of the potential strengths and vulnerabilities of the leading contenders. But with the NDC’s flagbearer yet to be chosen and the general election still ahead, the central question remains whether either party can assemble a sufficiently united and broad-based electoral coalition to secure victory in the first round or whether Ghana’s 2028 presidential election will require a run-off.