Gov't accepts proposal to extend presidential term to five years, sets minimum age at 35 — Attorney-General

The government has accepted a proposal to extend the presidential term of office from four years to five years as part of its position on the Constitutional Review Committee's recommendations.

It has also accepted in principle a recommendation to lower the minimum age for presidential candidates from the current 40 years but will set the threshold at 35 years instead of the 30 years proposed by the committee.

Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Dr Dominic Ayine, announced the government's position on Thursday, July 30, while outlining the Executive's response to the Constitutional Review Committee's report submitted to President John Dramani Mahama.

"The government has accepted a recommendation to extend the term of office of the president from four years to five years, with the term of Parliament extended to correspond with this.

"Our thinking is practical. Under the current four-year cycle, the early months of every administration are consumed by transition matters, and the final year is largely consumed by elections. A five-year term provides a more realistic time frame for the formulation, implementation, and assessment of government policy," he said.

The Constitutional Review Committee, chaired by Professor Henry Kwasi Prempeh, submitted its summary recommendations to the President in December 2025 before presenting its final report in February 2026.

The report, titled Transforming Ghana from Electoral Democracy to a Developmental Democracy, contains 206 proposed constitutional amendments, comprising 147 amendments to existing provisions and 59 entirely new provisions.

Dr Ayine explained that the government's position was formulated after Cabinet extensively reviewed each recommendation, with proposals either accepted, accepted in principle subject to modification, or rejected.

The government also accepted proposals to hold presidential elections on a date within the first week of November to be determined by the Electoral Commission.

The Attorney General explained that the change would provide greater certainty to the electoral calendar and allow sufficient time between elections and the swearing-in of a new president on January 7.

The Executive further endorsed a proposal requiring presidential election petitions to be filed within 14 days of the declaration of results and determined by the Supreme Court within 30 days.

The proposed amendment would also require the Electoral Commission to disclose all relevant election data to the court and the parties involved in any petition.