Rejected Ballot: A misplaced power of the thumb

The phrase “misplaced power of the thumb” could metaphorically suggest the misuse or mishandling of voting authority or the symbolic act of voting. Imagine a scenario, where the “thumb” symbolizes the power to vote-a fundamental right in democratic societies.  

If this power is “misplaced,” it could imply that voting rights are not properly exercised or respected, leading to ballots being rejected. This could happen due to voter error (like incorrect marking), procedural issues, or deliberate interference.

The “misplaced power of the thumb” could be seen as a commentary on the fragility of democratic processes when voting rights are not properly valued or protected. It underscores the importance of voter education and fair electoral practices; every vote counts in a democratic election.

Elections are critical in establishing democratic governments in various nations, including Ghana. Since 1992, elections have been a fundamental aspect of Ghana’s democracy, serving as the primary means to attain political power.

The Electoral Commission of Ghana has conducted eight continuous elections under the Fourth Republic, reflecting Ghanaians’ steadfast commitment to electing their leaders through democratic processes. While some election outcomes in Ghana have been contested, local and international observers view them as free, fair, transparent, and credible.

To enhance the electoral process, Ghana’s Election Management Body (EMB) has implemented operational and administrative policies over the years.

These efforts aim to uphold the constitutional right to vote and empower citizens to choose their leaders democratically. Key measures include voter education initiatives, a Biometric Voters Register, fostering inter-party dialogue, and ensuring strict adherence to voting procedures to uphold the principle of “one person, one vote.”

As the country beckons to fulfil another constitutional and democratic election on December 7, 2024, making it the ninth mileage since 1992, there is one crucial aspect of the processes of voting that needs to be surmounted.

Thus, the cancerous incidence of rejected ballots characterizes every election session.

What then are rejected ballots

A rejected ballot is a ballot that has not been properly executed by a voter and therefore declared invalid during counting following the relevant regulations.

In other words, it is a ballot, which has been handled by a voter in such a way that the voter’s intention cannot be ascertained, or it has some deficiency on the face of it.

According to Mr Eric Dzakpasu, Volta Regional Director of the Electoral Commission, the phenomenon of rejected ballot is occasioned when a ballot paper duly issued to an eligible voter, and casts is invalid because it cannot be counted for any of the contesting candidates in an election.

By regulation 39 of the Public Election Regulation 2016 (C.I 94) a ballot shall be void and not counted (Rejected) if it:

1. Does not bear the official mark of the Electoral Commission, (ii) Is not thumb printed by the voter to identify the candidate or the mark of the voter lies in two candidates’ boxes, (iii) the voter marked for more than one candidate in an election, (iv) Is not thumb printed or marked at all by the voter or show a choice of candidate.

Under Regulation 39 of C. I 94 of Ghana’s electoral law on elections, before a Presiding Officer, declares a ballot invalid or rejected, he/she must do the following;

A. Take proper precautions to prevent a person from seeing the serial number printed on it; B. Show the paper to each candidate or counting agent of the candidate if present and C. gives the candidate or the counting agent of the candidate an opportunity to express an opinion on the matter.

Mr Akwasi Agyeman, a PhD candidate, disclosed to the Ghana News Agency that vote malevolence as in rejected ballot could give an overarching advantage to contestants in any political enterprise.

He said the corresponding effect of the relationship between rejected ballots and the performance of especially parliamentary candidates and by extension Presidential elections could have grave consequences for election contests.

Mr Agyeman recounted how Mr Daniel Nii Kwartei Titus Glover, the Greater Accra Regional Minister, and a former Member of Parliament of Tema East Constituency (2013-2021) with only three votes secured a win in a contest.

Agents of political parties at the Polling station level could deliberately orchestrate rejected ballots by creating double marks on the ballot by folding the ballot paper especially, in a horizontal manner to nullify its effect.

The “Yombo Power” or intentional Spoilt ballot

This phenomenon known in political parlance as, “Yombo power,” according to the writer’s finding, is where opposing party members apply dye to part of their hair and during the sorting process of ballots could nullify the ballot by touching the dyed hair and creating multiple marks on the ballot paper to invalidate it.

These covert processes, if successfully implemented, increase the number of rejected ballots, as the country may have witnessed over the period.

This clandestine strategy is deployed in areas of strongholds to reduce the number of opponents and features heavily in the Presidential and Parliamentary contests.

Intentionally destroying someone’s ballot before tabulation could constitute electoral fraud.

The validity of an election may be questioned if there is an unusually high proportion of spoilt votes.

In multiple-vote U.S. ballots, “voter roll-off” is calculated by subtracting the number of ballots cast for a “down-ballot” office, such as mayor, from the number of those cast for a “top-of-the-ballot” office, such as President. When the election jurisdiction does not report voter turnout, roll-off can be used as a proxy for residual votes.

Some voters may only be interested in voting for the major offices, and not bother filling in the lower positions, resulting in a partially valid ballot.

During the 2021 Hong Kong legislative elections, pro-democratic supporters urged voters to cast spoilt ballots or not vote in the election in protest of the rewriting of election rules by the National People’s Congress in Beijing.

Despite the Government having criminalized inciting voters to cast invalid ballots or not vote, as well as attempts to boost voter turnout, the election recorded an unusual number of invalid votes cast and historically low voter turnout.

Empiricism of rejected ballots in Ghana’s election

Certified Results of Recent Ejisu By-Election

EC’s certified results in the recent Ejisu by-election on April 30, 2024, show that Esther Osei (CPP) – 89 (0.18%); Kwabena Boateng (NPP ) – 27,782 (55.79%); Beatrice Boakye (LPG) – 149 (0.30%); Kwabena Owusu Aduomi (IND) – 21,536 (43.24%), Joseph Agyeman Fredua (IND) – 222 (0.45%); Joseph Attakora (IND) – 23 (0.05%).

This gives a summary of total ballots cast as – 50,218, total valid votes – 49,801 with total rejected ballots at – 417 and voter turnout to be – 47.02 per cent.

From the above, if rejected ballots came out as a candidate, it would have placed third in the Ejisu by-election, which demonstrates the high rates of the rejected ballots phenomenon.

If rejected ballots were a political party in Ghana, could boast of a steady increase in performance and popularity ahead of the smaller parties ever since the country returned to multiparty democracy.

EC’s data has put rejected ballots since 1992 as follows; 1992-64,354 rejected ballots (3.02%); 1996 – 111,108 rejected ballots (1.53%); 2000 first run, 119,362 rejected ballots (1.8%) and the run-off – 104,214 rejected ballots (1.53%).

Again, in 2004 – 188,123 rejected ballots (2.13%) were recorded; 2008 – 205,438 rejected ballots (2.4%) in the first round, 92,886 rejected ballots (1.02%); in the run-off, 2012 -251,720 rejected ballots (2.3%); 2016 – 168,882 rejected ballots (1.54%); and 2020 – 313,397 rejected ballots (2.33%) of total votes cast.

In the 2008 general election for example, if rejected ballots were valid, one of the two major political parties’ contestants (Prof John Evans Atta Mills of the NDC and Nana Akufo-Addo of the NPP) could have won the first round of the elections. This would have saved the country millions of cedis that went into the run-off and the unnecessary political tensions that came with it.

Election watchers say that the two political parties placing first and second on the ballot paper carry the possibility of increasing rejected ballots due to the closeness of candidates.

Digital technology usage

In an era of digitisation and artificial intelligence (AI), digital Apps are emerging, which could downsize the high rates of rejected ballots with the “Jak Makavo Systems, designed by John Adama, a Ghanaian IT developer, coming in handy.

It offers the electorates the opportunity to avoid interfacing with ink during the voting process.

Designed so that a removable duplicate party logo is placed on top of the ballot paper, which is removed and pasted on the voter’s choice of candidate to cast a ballot.

The concept in the second system uses a ballot paper and a separate sticker or stamp, the voter then applies some water at the back of the sticker to vote or uses a stamp to mark the ballot paper to complete the voting process.

Way forward

State institutions such as the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), the Information Services Department (ISD), political parties, faith-based organizations, and the media carry out intensive voter education and greater awareness across the country to create the necessary consciousness on proper ways to vote and not destroy the ballot.

All votes are destined to be counted in order not to misplace the power of the thumb and ballot paper.