In the Assin North by-election, James Gyakye Quayson, the parliamentary candidate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has achieved a resounding victory
The polls, which took place on June 27, 2023, saw Mr. Quayson secure 17,245 votes, representing an impressive 57.56 percent of the total votes cast.
This substantial margin allowed him to surpass his competitors, Charles Opoku of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), who garnered 12,630 votes (42.15 percent), and Bernice Enyonam Sefenu of the Liberal Party of Ghana (LPG), who received a mere 87 votes (0.29 percent).
Mr. Quayson, who had previously won the seat in the 2020 elections with 17,498 votes, was later removed from Parliament due to his dual citizenship status before filing his nomination forms.
The vacancy in the Assin North constituency arose after the Supreme Court ordered Parliament to expunge Mr. Quayson’s name from its records on May 17.
The Court ruled that he was ineligible to contest the 2020 parliamentary election in the constituency as he had not provided evidence of renouncing his Canadian citizenship when submitting his nomination forms on October 9, 2020.
Furthermore, the Court deemed his election as a Member of Parliament for the Assin North Constituency unconstitutional.
Following his expulsion from Parliament, Mr. Quayson now faces criminal charges of perjury and forgery. However, the NDC chose to field him as their candidate in the by-election, aiming to rectify what they considered an injustice.
Displaying confidence in his victory, Mr. Quayson emphasized his track record of serving the people of Assin North and expressed assurance in the support he received from the electorate.
Overall, James Gyakye Quayson’s landslide triumph in the Assin North by-election reflects his strong mandate and demonstrates the support he garnered despite the legal challenges he faced.
