2024 ELECTIONS; a matter of data and numbers

In 2024, the name of the game is data and fact-checking. If you cannot research, dig for and put numbers together, you are out. It is not about who will shout most. It is about who will communicate and adduce the necessary data and explain the nuances of same.

Infographics, and data analysis are key to any campaign going forward. The median age of the population in Ghana is 21.8 years. The majority are in tertiary institutions. He or she can read and write and has a smartphone or a laptop. Let me give you some numbers; 48.5% of our population is between 18 and 54 years.

There were 16.99 million internet users in Ghana as of January 2022. Ghana’s internet penetration rate stood at 53.0 percent of the total population at the start of 2022 (Data Reportal, 2021)

This practically means half of the population of Ghana has access to the internet. What you say as a politician can be fact-checked. Several media houses have built infrastructure for this purpose.

The campaigns won’t be like 15/20 years ago. Now you say it and it’s checked. And anyone can do it, the media or private citizens. Aside from the traditional media, it is also crucial for political parties and representatives to focus on social media. It is thriving.

It is attractive to the youth and as a result millions are here and joining each passing day. There were 8.80 million social media users in Ghana in January 2022. Kepios analysis reveals that social media users in Ghana increased by 600 thousand (+7.3 percent) between 2021 and 2022.

Data published in Meta’s advertising resources indicates that Facebook had 7.05 million users in Ghana in early 2022. Numbers published in Twitter’s advertising resources indicate that Twitter had 919.7 thousand users in Ghana in early 2022.

These numbers show how new media is growing. It’s thriving. It is integral in any modern-day political campaign.

Take US Congresswoman, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the youngest woman ever elected to Congress. Her victory over Joe Crowley, the entrenched and powerful democratic incumbent, was because of social media.

She canvassed for votes, showing Twitter especially, and that shot her to political stardom and immense influence. She also used social media to raise more than $10.3 million.

The notion that social media isn’t real life is untrue. Social media is a real-world platform and is used by very real humans. And the numbers are growing by the day.

With the new media, politicians and political parties can directly communicate with their constituents and base and vice versa.

Through the same space, the footsoldiers can easily participate in political discourse, influence political decisions and make their voices heard, while politicians can share their policy proposals, post ads and fundraising campaigns, and so on.

In 2020, political spending on digital advertising tripled in comparison to 2016.

If you invest and invest well, you’ll enjoy the fruits because the elections of today are data-driven and a process of numbers. If you don’t get your data, numbers, and targeting right, you’re out.

 

Written By: Eugene Osei-Tutu