The Seventh-Day Adventist Church is seeking a modification to the general election date of December 7, 2024.
The church filed a petition with the Electoral Commission and the Attorney General, stating that the date, which falls on a Saturday, interferes with the Sabbath—a holy day dedicated to God’s worship.
The church is suggesting “the first (1st) or second (2nd) Tuesday of November” as the new date for Ghana’s general elections, which it believes must be legislated to ensure Adventists’ freedom to worship.
“In anticipation of changing the date for general elections from December 7 to the first (1st) or second (2nd) Tuesday of November, the leadership of the Seventh-day Adventist Church met with the Electoral Commission (EC) on Wednesday, June 7, 2023.
“The Church proposed to the EC a change from the December 7 date to the 1st or 2nd Tuesday of November in a general elections’ year.”
In an interview with the media, Deputy Head of Religious Liberty at the Seventh-Day Adventist Church, James Kwabena Bomfeh, defended the idea, arguing that it would give adequate time to prepare for the eventual changeover.
He argued that if adopted, the proposal would also give traditional worshippers the chance to fully participate in the elections, as they often stay off their farms on Tuesdays.
“We do have enough time between elections and swearing-in, and also to allow for a smooth exchange of files and processes between outgoing regimes and incoming ones. We will have a day, therefore, in this sense, Tuesday, where in the traditional society, those who go to the farm relieve themselves of farming duties and stay at home; those who go fishing stay at home to also rest and participate massively in the elections.”
