Ghana Supreme Court Upholds 2012 Election Results

Ghana’s Supreme Court on Thursday upheld President John Dramani Mahama’s election win last year, dismissing the opposition’s case alleging voter fraud in a test for one of Africa’s most stable democracies. Shortly after the ruling was announced, opposition leader Nana Akufo-Addo conceded defeat and said he would not seek further review of the decision.

Mahama narrowly clinched December’s vote with 50.7 percent of the ballot, but the opposition’s New Patriotic Party (NPP) had alleged fraud ranging from inflated tallies to the participation of unregistered voters, according to Reuters.

Justice William Atuguba, president of the nine-member panel, told a packed courthouse in downtown Accra that the tribunal had dismissed the opposition appeal during a live broadcast that transfixed West African nation, Reuters reports.

“The overall effect is that the first respondent (Mahama) was validly elected,” Atuguba said.