Parliament notifies EC of vacant Kpandai seat following court ruling

The Parliamentary Service has formally informed the Electoral Commission (EC) of a vacancy in the Kpandai Constituency after the Tamale High Court annulled the 2024 parliamentary election results, ordering a rerun.

The notification, dated December 4, 2025, officially triggers the administrative and legal processes required for a new election.

The letter, signed by the Clerk to Parliament, Ebenezer Ahumah Djietror, was addressed to EC Chairperson Jean Mensa. It cited the Clerk’s authority under Article 112(5) of the 1992 Constitution, which mandates that the EC be notified whenever a parliamentary seat falls vacant.

The Constitution further requires that a by-election be held within 90 days of the vacancy, unless it occurs within three months of Parliament’s dissolution. Based on the December 4 notification, the EC is now expected to conduct the rerun by early March 2026.

The notification follows the High Court ruling on November 24, 2025, delivered by Justice Emmanuel Brew Plange, which annulled the 2024 parliamentary results for Kpandai due to significant electoral irregularities. The court determined that the anomalies materially affected the outcome and ordered a rerun to ensure a credible election.

The vacancy arose after Daniel Nsala Wakpal, the 2024 National Democratic Congress (NDC) parliamentary candidate for Kpandai, challenged the declaration of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) candidate, Matthew Nyindam, as the MP-elect. Wakpal argued that irregularities in the declaration, including inconsistencies in some pink sheets, compromised the integrity of the results. The court agreed, annulling Nyindam’s win and directing the EC to organise a new poll.

The original election results had shown Nyindam leading with 27,947 votes (53.47%), while Wakpal secured 24,213 votes (46.33%). The All People’s Congress (APC) candidate, Donkor Eric Nipani, received just 104 votes. The election was marred by violence, with reports of vandalised ballots and Biometric Verification Devices at the collation centre. Security personnel intervened to restore order.

Lawyers for the NPP have since filed for a stay of execution of the court order pending appeal. Meanwhile, the EC is expected to announce the full timetable for the rerun, including nomination deadlines and the election date, in the coming weeks.

The upcoming rerun is pivotal for the people of Kpandai, as it will determine the legitimate parliamentary representative for the constituency.