What Really Happened in Awutu Senya West in the 2020 Parliamentary Elections

The results of the 2020 parliamentary elections in the Awutu Senya West Constituency offer an invaluable lesson for members of the New Patriotic Party (NPP). When the final ballot was counted, the gap between the winner and the loser was razor-thin. While the NPP’s Nenyi George Andah obtained 29,832 votes, the NDC’s Gizella Tetteh-Agbotui had 32,708 votes — just 2,876 votes separated the two candidates.

The Voters Spoke, But Not Against Andah

A loss of 2,876 votes out of over 62,000 cast is not a rejection. It is a warning. This represents less than 5% of the total votes cast.

It suggests that many voters were, in fact, impressed by the performance of the NPP candidate. They came out. They voted. But their numbers were not enough to overcome the gap created by a party that could not speak with one voice.

The evidence therefore points to a significant part of the problem coming from within; from sympathizers who felt unheard and decided to sit out; from a machinery that failed to turn out because the engine was not oiled.

In politics, elections are not won by candidates alone. They are won by united parties.

There is something about the NPP’s performance in the 2020 elections that no analyst can ignore. On that same day Nenyi Andah lost by a hair’s breadth to the NDC’s candidate, his party’s flagbearer, Nana Akufo-Addo, won the constituency with 50.3%. The results also point strongly to skirt-and-blouse voting: Akufo-Addo received 31,486 votes in the constituency, 1,654 more than the NPP parliamentary candidate’s 29,832.

Comparative Performance of NPP Candidates Since 2012

The case was entirely different in the 2024 general elections. The NPP candidate for that election lost by a margin of 7,058 votes. This was the widest margin of defeat since the former Awutu Senya Constituency was divided into West and East in 2012.

It was also the first time the NPP’s parliamentary votes dropped since 2012. Whether the NPP won or lost the seat, its parliamentary votes had increased from the previous election. For instance, in 2012, the late Hon. Oppey Abbey of the NPP polled 18,487 votes. In 2016, Nenyi Andah increased it to 28,867, and again to 29,832 in 2020, though he lost by a hair’s breadth to Mrs. Gizella Tetteh-Agbotui of the NDC. In 2024, however, the NPP’s parliamentary votes declined by 2,895 from its 2020 level.

The drop in Mr. Arhin’s votes remains a puzzle, considering the fact that he had the opportunity to campaign on national government projects. Stalled projects like the Bawjiase AstroTurf were completed to pave the way for him to campaign on his government’s performance. The Ojobi-Senya Road was reconstructed. The Ofaakor-Bawjiase Road project was also started. The huge loss could have been caused by certain factors, that the party needs to fish out and learn from.

Way Forward: NPP Must Repeat What It Got Right

The decision voters made on Nenyi Andah in 2020 shows that the party, under his leadership as parliamentary candidate and Member of Parliament (MP), got certain things right in its relationship with the electorates. The NPP should therefore study what worked and repeat it to win the hearts of the constituents again.

One thing is evidently true about Nenyi Andah. He respects relationships. So, he might have endeared himself to the hearts of the voters through selfless service and the personal relationship he built with them as their representative in Parliament.

Since Nenyi Andah became active in constituency affairs in 2014, following his decision to contest, he has not turned his back on them. He has been with them before, during, and after his tenure as MP.

During the 2016 electioneering campaign, he attended their social programmes, where he seized the opportunity to sell his vision. Many would have thought he would hide behind the busy schedules of a lawmaker and deputy minister and ignore them when he became MP in 2017, but that was not Nenyi Andah. Then came the blow in 2020. Nenyi Andah lost a huge opportunity, but he still did not abandon the constituents. He has remained visibly present, attending every social programme to which they invite him.

Nenyi Andah’s relationship with the Awutu Senya West constituents before, during, and after his tenure, and his performance in the 2020 parliamentary elections, show that the NPP may not struggle to stage a comeback in 2028 if it builds its strategy around this phenomenon.

Then comes the most difficult question in a sensitive political environment: What did the NPP in Awutu Senya West get right from 2017 to 2020? Of course, Nenyi Andah and the NPP did not sleep on the job the voters gave them — to provide development projects. During his tenure, the NPP introduced several projects. Classroom Blocks were built. Potable water was extended to several communities. Health facilities were renovated and equipped with medical equipment. Some roads were upgraded. Some unemployed youth got permanent jobs through the MP's lobbying skills.

These are not the only projects the NPP, with Nenyi Andah as MP, introduced in the area. They are symbolic evidence of his selfless service to the people he represented in Parliament for four years.

The poor performance of the party’s 2024 parliamentary candidate, however, shows that projects were not the only factor that won Nenyi Andah the hearts of the general voters in 2016 and 2020. His personal relationship and leadership class were largely responsible. He was deeply involved in the day-to-day lives of the constituents before, during, and after his tenure as MP. The constituents interpreted this as a sign of respect.

Of course, Nenyi Andah did not get everything right. As the leader of the party in the constituency, he cannot absolve himself of the disunity and factionalism that cost the NPP the seat in 2020.

Conclusion

Going forward, whoever the party chooses must sustain the same continuous presence between elections. The NPP may still suffer another painful defeat if it fails to build unity through honest reconciliation. But if it chooses the path of unity, mends fences, and presents a candidate who understands the people, then 2,876 votes will not be a margin of loss — it will be the margin of victory.

The 2020 result was not a rejection of Nenyi George Andah. It was a rejection of division. For Awutu Senya West, and for the NPP, the lesson is clear: when the party is united, the people will follow.

The author is a political observer, a regular contributor to News Commentary, a current affairs programme by the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation, and a columnist with Modern Ghana, an esteemed online news portal.

   Comments0