Former Communications Team Member of the Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia 2024 Campaign, Dennis Miracles Aboagye, has dismissed assertions that the Vice President’s defeat in the 2024 general elections disqualifies him as a viable candidate for the 2028 presidential race.
Responding to claims by NPP flagbearer contender Kennedy Agyapong, who argued that Dr. Bawumia’s 2024 loss was the worst in the party’s history, Aboagye described such statements as both factually incorrect and statistically unfounded.
He made this assertion in an interview with The1957News on the sidelines of over 200 MMDCEs endorsing Dr. Bawumia publicly at the Alisa Hotels.
“It’s false if anybody says it is the most unprecedented loss in the history of the party. I think 41.7% is higher than 39%, and we have lost an election with 39% before,” he stated.
He argued that historical electoral data in Ghana does not support the idea that a first-time losing candidate cannot stage a comeback. Citing political figures including President Kufuor, President Mills, President Akufo-Addo, and former President John Mahama, he highlighted how each of them lost at least once before eventually winning the presidency.
“President Kufuor lost with 39% and came back to win. President Mills did around 41-42%, then 44%, and finally won. Nana Akufo-Addo contested in 2008 and 2012 before winning in 2016. Even President Mahama, who lost by over one million votes, came back in 2024 to win with nearly two million votes,” he added.
According to Aboagye, the electoral pattern in Ghana rather proves that candidates who build a baseline support in their first attempt are more likely to succeed in subsequent elections.
“The data shows that those who go into an election for the first time and don’t win but gather significant support are the ones who ride on that base to eventually win.”