An aide to former Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has dismissed concerns over his candidate’s number three position on the ballot paper in the upcoming New Patriotic Party (NPP) presidential primary, stressing that the message—not the position—is what wins elections.

Dennis Miracles Aboagye, a key spokesperson for the Bawumia campaign, said the ballot position is of minimal consequence in a delegate-based election and pointed to the former Vice President’s landslide victory in the 2023 NPP primaries as proof.

“In spite of the position on the ballot, we have a responsibility to sell the message of Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia and, most importantly, why the party should present him,” he stated during an interview with Sammi Wiafe on Eyewitness News on Friday, October 10.

“In the 2023 primaries, he was number two. He won the election because the emphasis is not on the position on the ballot paper but on the message that we carry to the people.”

Dr. Bawumia drew the third slot on the ballot during a balloting exercise held at the NPP headquarters in Accra on Friday, October 10, 2025. The draw sets the tone for the party’s high-stakes presidential primary scheduled for January 31, 2026.

Former Assin Central MP, Kennedy Agyapong secured the number one spot, followed by former Agriculture Minister Dr. Bryan Acheampong at number two. Bawumia came third, with Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum and Kwabena Agyepong taking the fourth and fifth positions respectively.

But Aboagye insisted that for the over 280,000 delegates voting in the primaries, ballot positions are not a major factor.

“Remember that this is a delegates’ conference. These are voters who are very political. There is not a single voter out of the over 280,000 who cannot identify any of the five candidates,”* he argued.

“They can all be identified by name, they can all be identified by position. So typically, except for the funfair, when it comes to delegates’ elections, really the position on the ballot paper isn’t such a big deal.”