The cost of winning a presidential election in Ghana now stands at approximately US$200 million, the Ghana Centre for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana) has disclosed.
This revelation has generated concerns about the future of Ghana’s democracy, which clearly has become a preserve for the wealthy and people well connected, rather than those who qualify to lead.
The sustainability and inclusiveness of Ghana’s democratic process is at stake, bearing in mind the consequences of the highly monetised political atmosphere.
The Executive Director of the Ghana Centre for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana), Professor Henry Kwasi Prempeh, who made the disclosure at on Open Society event in Accra Monday, September 15, 2025, indicated that the growing financial burden of elections risks shutting out capable leaders who do not have access to vast resources.
“I think you need about $200 million to win a presidential contest. How many of you here are ever going to be in that category or cohort of candidates? Even at the parliamentary level or at the primary level, it is nearly impossible for many of you,” Prof. Prempeh said.
According to him, the development undermines the country’s democratic and developmental aspirations, expressing the need to regulate how funds are expensed by political parties.
He said: “We cannot have that kind of democracy and expect it to be developmental. So, we need to worry about our campaign financing and regulating our internal party democracy.”
The monetisation of Ghana’s political space has been an issue of concern for some years now, with experts warning of the need to adopt stringent measures to ensure fairness, accountability, and inclusivity in Ghana’s democratic space.
CDD, Transparency International call for review of the Political Parties Act
