Who wins? NPP stalwarts eye presidential slot in 2024

So far, seven stalwarts of the NPP have made public their intentions to lead the party.

Already, two of them have resigned from their Cabinet positions to prepare and win the hearts and minds of party delegates.

They are the Minister of Trade and Industry, Alan Kwadwo Kyerematen, and the Minister of Food and Agriculture, Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto.

The seven other contenders, all leading members of the NPP, are the Vice-President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia; a former Minister of Energy, Boakye Agyarko; the Member of Parliament (MP) for Assin Central, Kennedy Agyapong, and a former presidential spokesperson and General Secretary of the party, Kwabena Agyei Agyepong.

The rest are a former Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Joe Ghartey, who is also the MP for Essikado-Ketan; a former MP for Mampong, Francis Addai-Nimoh, and a former Minister of State, Dr. Kofi Konadu Apraku, who is also a former MP for Offinso North.

It has become obvious that some of the aspirants are only in the race to swell the number of aspirants so that they can also boast of having been candidates.

Pulse.com.gh profiles the contestants and their chances of leading the NPP to victory in 2024.

Alan Kyeremanten

Alan Kyeremanten is the presidential candidate hopeful to lead the NPP in 2024.

Kyerematen who also took part in the race in 2008 and 2012 is lacing his boot to the contest.

His decision to contest was borne out of the mounting pressures from the party's grassroots supporters and at the appropriate time, he will make the announcement.

John Kwadwo Alan Kyerematen Pulse Ghana

Joe Ghartey

Joe Ghartey declares intention to run for President in 2024

The Member of Parliament for the Essikadu Ketan Constituency in the Western region, Joe Ghartey has announced his intention to run for President in 2024.

The legislator has been one of the few names tipped to run for the NPP flagbearership position when Nana Addo's tenure ends.

Ghartey who doubles as the Minister for Railways and Development was part of the NPP presidential nomination race in the run-up to the 2008 election.

He came 3rd in the race behind Nana Addo and Alan Kyerematen respectively.

Joe Ghartey declared his intention to contest the position again before the 2016 general elections.

He filed his nomination papers for the position along with six other aspirants. There was a Special Delegates Congress on August 31, 2014, by the party to trim the number of aspirants down to five, under the constitution of the NPP.

He was third but chose not to go for the second round and supported the winning candidate Nana Addo.

He has now announced that he will be in the race for the flagbearership of the NPP and is bent on leading the party into the 2024 election.

Ghartey has been a Deputy Speaker of Parliament as well as a Deputy Attorney General in Ghana.

Joe Ghartey Pulse Ghana

Dr. Afriyie Akoto lacing his boot to contest

The Minister for Food and Agriculture, Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto, has said he is interested in running for President on the ticket of the NPP.

According to him, as a senior member of the party, he is qualified for the position.

He said it will be an honour if delegates of his party select him to run as President in the election of 2024.

He is credited with the introduction of programmes such as the five modules of Planting for Food and Jobs, Rearing for Food and Jobs, Planting for Export and Rural Development, agricultural mechanization and greenhouse technology, as well as the recruitment of 6,000 agricultural extension officers to beef up the system and the recruitment of more than 1,000 veterinary doctors, which is ongoing.

Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto Pulse Ghana

Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia

Grassroots supporters of Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia have started their aggressive campaign in other for him to succeed Nana Addo in 2024.

Earlier, Dr. Bawumia debunked his involvement in the presidential posters flying on social media.

According to him, he has not given his consent to anyone for such a presidential hopeful campaign to commence.

He added that his quest is to help Nana Addo to succeed in his tenure.

However, fans of Dr. Bawumia have stated that they will make him succeed his boss whether he agrees to it or not.

Vice-President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia Pulse Ghana

Boakye Agyarko

Boakye Agyarko is a banker, economist, former Minister of Energy, and founder member of the NPP in 1992.

He was appointed National campaign manager of the NPP in the 2012 presidential election and policy adviser to the presidential candidate of the NPP during the 2016 election.

Boakye Agyarko ece-auto-gen

Francis Addai-Nimoh

Francis Addai-Nimoh is lacing his boot to contest again at the impending primaries of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) to be elected as the party's flagbearer for the 2024 presidential election.

Addai-Nimoh stated that Ghana needs a practical, honest, and capable leader to serve as President, the main motivation in seeking to run for the highest office of the land with the NPP.

He said the NPP's agenda of breaking the 8 can only be possible if a fresh face is introduced as the party's candidate for the general elections.

He contested in the NPP's presidential primary in 2014 and lost the bid.

Addai-Nimoh's first election campaign had him elected as the Member of Parliament in 2008 for the Mampong Constituency in the Ashanti region, serving with the NPP until 2017.

He served as the Ranking Member of Parliament on the Select Committee on Environment, Science, and Technology.

Although fairly unknown at first at the time, Addai-Nimoh ran in the 2014 NPP flagbearer leadership race and placed 3rd out of 7 candidates, when Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo became the leader of the party.

Francis Addai-Nimoh Pulse Ghana

Dr. Konadu Apraku

Dr. Konadu Apraku, an economist, is a former Minister of Regional Cooperation and NEPAD and also Minister of Trade and Industry in former President Kufuor's administration.

In 2008, he was appointed by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Council of Ministers as the ECOWAS Commissioner for Macroeconomic Policy and Economic Research, where he was responsible for a multilateral surveillance mechanism

Dr. Apraku was also a member of the Second, Third, and Fourth Parliaments of the Fourth Republic.

He was among the 17 aspirants who contested the flagbearer slot of the NPP in 2007 ahead of the 2008 elections.

Dr Kofi Konadu Apraku Pulse Ghana

Kwabena Agyepong declares contest

Kwabena Agyepong has joined a growing list of persons who have declared their intention to contest the party's flagbearership race.

He played roles in the campaigns of NPP Presidential Candidates Albert Adu Boahen in 1992, and John Kufuor in 1996.

He also played a role in Nana Akufo-Addo's campaign to win the presidential nomination in 1998 but subsequently played a role in the overall party effort during the 2000 general election which was won by John Kufuor.

He served as the press secretary to John Kufuor from 2001 to 2006.

Kwabena Agyapong was one of 17 aspirants who contested for the party's nomination to replace John Agyekum Kuffuor as presidential candidate for the 2008 election.

Kwabena Agyepong was the General Secretary of the NPP and was suspended from the party in 2015.

Kwabena Agyapong Pulse Ghana

Kennedy Agyapong

The New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament for Assin Central, Kennedy Ohene Agyapong, has formally declared to contest as flagbearer for his party in the 2024 elections.

He said he was more a leader than a politician, explaining that as a leader, he was focused more on national development whereas politicians are focused on the next election.

He was first elected a member of parliament in 2000 to the seat of Assin North.

He retained his seat in the 2004 and 2008 parliamentary elections.

In 2012 he was elected in the new seat of Assin Central and was re-elected in 2016.

He also retained his seat in the 2020 general elections. He is currently the Chairman of the Parliament's Defense and Interior Committee and also a member of the Judiciary Committee and also a member of the Special Budget Committee.