Polling closed in Ghana’s parliamentary and presidential elections yesterday afternoon, and early results are beginning to roll in, showing a very close presidential contest between Nana Akuffo Addo of the ruling NPP and Professor John Atta Mills of the NDC. Somewhat surprisingly, though, the election has received little mainstream media coverage, leading some to ask whether Ghana even exists.
The election carries particular importance in a continent marred by widespread corruption and corrupt elections (most recent examples include Kenya in December 2007 and Nigeria this past April). The success of the election could mean the rise of "mature democracy" in a region where states so defined are a rarity. This, according to Joel Barkan, a senior associate at the Africa Program of the Center for International and Strategic Studies in Washington DC. While I would argue that his definition of "mature democracy" is rather narrow (he effectively defines a mature democracy as a country that has had two successful handovers from power from one legitimately elected leader to another), the analysis is nevertheless an interesting refresher of a critical political science concept as it applies to Africa. You can read his analysis here.
(For updated election results, see the Ghana Elections Twitter feed, which is being updated several times an hour)