Electoral Commission kicks off 2026 voters register update

The Electoral Commission of Ghana on Monday launched its nationwide continuous voter registration exercise, opening dedicated registration centres at district offices, hospitals, universities and selected market hubs across all sixteen regions.nnChairperson Jean Mensa said the Commission was targeting at least three million new registrants before December 2026, with a particular focus on first-time voters aged eighteen to twenty-four who were missed during the pandemic-era 2020 register compilation.nnNew features this year include a mobile registration unit that will travel to remote communities in the Upper West, Savannah and Bono East regions that have historically had low registration rates. The Commission is also piloting digital ID card printing on-site at five regional capitals, cutting the collection wait from three months to two days.nnThe main opposition NDC welcomed the exercise but called for broader public education, arguing that many eligible voters in rural communities remained unaware of how to register. The party also renewed calls for the inter-party advisory committee to be given greater oversight of the process.nnCivic education NGO CDD-Ghana said it would deploy trainers to two hundred communities to assist with voter registration awareness. The organisation urged all political parties to mobilise their grassroots structures behind the exercise rather than treating it as a partisan activity.nnRegistration runs continuously through November 2026. Citizens need only a Ghana Card or passport to register.