Ghana Extends Voting To Saturday After Technical Hitch
Ghana extended voting in its presidential election into a second day, officials said on Friday, after a rash of technical problems prevented...
http://www.africaeagle.com/2012/12/ghana-extends-voting-to-saturday-after.html
Ghana extended voting in its presidential election into a second day, officials said on Friday, after a rash of technical problems prevented thousands of people in the West African state from casting their ballots on time.
The decision was broadly accepted by political parties and voters, who hoped the poll would entrench Ghana's reputation as a bulwark of democracy and progress in a region better known for civil wars, coups and corruption.
"People who lined up to vote today but were unable to do so will be able to cast their ballot tomorrow," said Election Commissioner Kwadwo Afari-Gyan. Polling stations would reopen at 7:00 a.m. (2 a.m. EDT), he said.
Many newly introduced electronic fingerprint readers, used to verify people's identities, malfunctioned on Friday, slowing voting and creating long lines at polling stations nationwide that could not be cleared.
A spokesman for the main opposition party said the glitches had affected hundreds of thousands of people, though the electoral commission declined to give an estimate.
A correspondent found several polling stations in Accra where fingerprint readers were not working, though other stations completed voting and were tallying ballots.
"We have been standing here for five hours. Our line is not moving," said Alice Hayford, a 44-year-old market trader on the western outskirts of the capital Accra, shortly before polls were due to close.
The election pits President John Dramani Mahama, who replaced the late John Atta Mills after his death in July, against Nana Akufo-Addo of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), who has vowed to provide free education and root out corruption.
Opinion polls point to a tight race, raising the prospect of a repeat of the near-deadlock of the 2008 elections, in which Mills defeated Akufo-Addo in a run-off with a margin of less than 1 percent.
Results are expected within two days of polls closing, with a second round possible at the end of December if no one wins an outright majority.
"People who lined up to vote today but were unable to do so will be able to cast their ballot tomorrow," said Election Commissioner Kwadwo Afari-Gyan. Polling stations would reopen at 7:00 a.m. (2 a.m. EDT), he said.
Many newly introduced electronic fingerprint readers, used to verify people's identities, malfunctioned on Friday, slowing voting and creating long lines at polling stations nationwide that could not be cleared.
A spokesman for the main opposition party said the glitches had affected hundreds of thousands of people, though the electoral commission declined to give an estimate.
A correspondent found several polling stations in Accra where fingerprint readers were not working, though other stations completed voting and were tallying ballots.
"We have been standing here for five hours. Our line is not moving," said Alice Hayford, a 44-year-old market trader on the western outskirts of the capital Accra, shortly before polls were due to close.
The election pits President John Dramani Mahama, who replaced the late John Atta Mills after his death in July, against Nana Akufo-Addo of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), who has vowed to provide free education and root out corruption.
Opinion polls point to a tight race, raising the prospect of a repeat of the near-deadlock of the 2008 elections, in which Mills defeated Akufo-Addo in a run-off with a margin of less than 1 percent.
Results are expected within two days of polls closing, with a second round possible at the end of December if no one wins an outright majority.
