President of Ghana

President of the Republic of Ghana
Flag of Ghana
Incumbent John Dramani Mahama since 24 July 2012
Style	His Excellency
Residence	Golden Jubilee House
Term length	Four years, renewable once
Inaugural holder	Kwame Nkrumah Republic established Jerry John Rawlings Current Constitution
Formation	Republic Day 1 July 1960 1992 Constitution 15 May 1992
Website	http://www.presidency.gov.gh, http://www.ghana.gov.gh

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The President of Ghana is the elected head of state and head of government of Ghana. Officially styled President of the Republic of Ghana and Commander-in-Chief of the Ghanaian Armed Forces. The President of Ghana is John Dramani Mahama, who succeeded to the presidency on 24 July 2012 following the death of John Atta Mills.

Eligibility

According to Chapter 8. Article 62 of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana, a person shall not be qualified for election as the President of Ghana unless -

• (a) he/she is a citizen of Ghana by birth

• (b) he/she has attained the age of forty years; and

• (c) he/she is a person who is otherwise qualified to be elected a Member of Parliament, except that the disqualifications set out in paragraphs (c), (d), and (e) of clause (2) of article 94 of this Constitution shall not be removed, in respect of any such person, by a presidential pardon or by the lapse of time as provided for in clause (5) of that article.

Oath of office

The president of Ghana must be sworn in by the Chief Justice before the citizens of Ghana at the Independence square in Accra. The president-elect must repeat the following:

"I, _______________ having been elected to the high office of President of the Republic of Ghana do (in the name of the Almighty God swear) (solemnly affirm) that I will be faithful and true to the Republic of Ghana; that I will at all times preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the Republic of Ghana; and that I dedicate myself to the service and well-being of the people of the Republic of Ghana and to do right to all manner of persons.

I further (solemnly swear) (solemnly affirm) that should I at any time break this oath of office; I shall submit myself to the laws of the Republic of Ghana and suffer the penalty for it.(So help me God.)"

Insignia

After the oath of office has been taken by the elected president, these following insignia are handed over to the president. These devices are used to display the rank of his/her office and are used on special occasions.

• President's Sword (image)

List of Presidents of Ghana (1960–present)

      Convention People's Party       National Democratic Congress       New Patriotic Party       Progress Party       People's National Party       Military

#	Name (Born–Died)	Picture	Took office	Left office	Elected (Parliament)	Political Party
Presidents of the Republic of Ghana (First Republic: 1960–1966)
1	Dr.h.c. Kwame Nkrumah (1909–1972)		1 July 1960	24 February 1966 (Deposed in a coup d'état)	1960 (1st)	Convention People's Party
State Presidents as Head of State (Second Republic: 1966–1972)
1	Major-General Joseph Arthur Ankrah (1915–1992) (Chairman of the National Liberation Council)		24 February 1966	2 April 1969	—	National Liberation Council
2	Brigadier Akwasi Amankwa Afrifa (1936–1979) (Chairman of the National Liberation Council until 3 September 1969, thereafter Chairman of the Presidential Commission)		2 April 1969	7 August 1970	—	National Liberation Council
3	Nii Amaa Ollennu (1906–1986) (Acting President)		7 August 1970	31 August 1970	—
4	Edward Akufo-Addo (1906–1979)		31 August 1970	13 January 1972 (Deposed in a coup d'état)	—	Independent
5	Colonel Ignatius Kutu Acheampong (1931–1979) (Chairman of the National Redemption Council utnil 9 October 1975, thereafter Chairman of the Supreme Military Council)		13 January 1972	5 July 1978 (Deposed in a palace coup d'état)	—	Supreme Military Council
6	Lieutenant-General Frederick Fred William Kwasi Akuffo (1937–1979) (Chairman of the Supreme Military Council)		5 July 1978	4 June 1979 (Deposed in a coup d'état)	—	Supreme Military Council
State Presidents as Head of State (Third Republic: 1979–1981)
1	Flight Lieutenant Jerry John Rawlings (1947–) (Chairman of the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council)		4 June 1979	24 September 1979 (1st Term)	—	Armed Forces Revolutionary Council
2	Dr. Hilla Limann (1934 – 1998)		24 September 1979	31 December 1981 (Deposed in a coup d'état)	1979 (1st)	People's National Party
3	Flight Lieutenant Jerry John Rawlings (1947–) (Chairman of the Provisional National Defence Council)		31 December 1981	7 January 1993 (2nd Term)	—	Provisional National Defence Council
Presidents of the Republic of Ghana (Fourth Republic: since 1993)
1	Jerry John Rawlings (1947–)		7 January 1993	7 January 2001 (2nd Term)	1992 (1st) 1996 (2nd)	National Democratic Congress
2	John Agyekum Kufuor (1938–)		7 January 2001	7 January 2009	2000 (3rd) 2004 (4th)	New Patriotic Party
3	John Evans Atta Mills (1944–2012)		7 January 2009	24 July 2012 (Died in office)	2008 (5th)	National Democratic Congress
4	John Dramani Mahama (1958–)		24 July 2012	Incumbent	2012 (6th)	National Democratic Congress

Residence

The President of Ghana's official residence was Osu Castle (also known as Fort Christiansborg or Christiansborg Castle) in Accra. In 2007, The opposition MPs in Ghana stormed out of a parliamentary debate on whether to take out a $50m loan to build a new presidential palace. MPs from President John Kufuor's New Patriotic Party voted unanimously in favour of taking the loan from India.

They argued that the President should not be based in Osu Castle, where slaves used to be kept. The opposition National Democratic Congress said the money would be better spent elsewhere. The old flagstaff house used by Ghana's first president as a residence is being renovated into a museum, while the grounds on which it stands is being built up as an ultra modern office complex and residence for the president and vice-president of Ghana as well as their staff. The new presidential palace was expected to be completed by August 2008 but was finally completed in November 2008. At the inauguration of the new presidential palace, President John Kufuor revealed to the press that the new name of the palace would be Golden Jubilee House. The chosen name had drawn lots of criticism from Ghanaians in the country and abroad. The name was chosen in reference to the 50th anniversary of Ghana's Independence.

Part of the office space has been given to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs when it had to be relocated because of a fire that guttered its offices. The NDC government refused to move to the venue after it assumed office in 2009 noting that some of the work in the residency is not completed. The government of President Atta Mills also noted that the National Security establishment wanted to ensure that security at the venue was improved before the government moved in. The name has been changed to Flagstaff House. On 7th February, 2013 the office of the Presidency was finally moved to the flagstaff house

Latest election

Main article: Ghanaian general election, 2012

Candidate	Party	Votes	%
John Dramani Mahama	National Democratic Congress	5,574,761	50.70
Nana Akufo-Addo	New Patriotic Party	5,248,898	47.74
Paa Kwesi Nduom	Progressive People's Party	64,362	0.59
Henry Herbert Lartey	Great Consolidated Popular Party	38,223	0.35
Ayariga Hassan	People's National Convention	24,617	0.22
Michael Abu Sakara Foster	Convention People's Party	20,323	0.18
Jacob Osei Yeboah	Independent	15,201	0.14
Akwasi Addai Odike	United Front Party	8,877	0.08
Invalid/blank votes		251,720	–
Total		11,246,982	100
Registered voters/turnout		14,158,890	79.43
Source: Electoral Commission of Ghana

See also

• Parliament of Ghana
• List of heads of state of Ghana