Ghana’s political discourse is gradually shifting away from personality-based conversations toward more policy-focused and performance-driven evaluations, according to a new IMANI PULSE sentiment analysis for May 2026.
The report, which analysed over 10,000 political mentions across Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), TikTok, YouTube, podcasts, and web-based news sources, found that public engagement is increasingly centred on governance outcomes, economic credibility, infrastructure delivery, and international engagement rather than political personalities alone.
It noted that about 78.2% of classified discussions were policy-oriented, compared to 21.8% that focused on personality-driven narratives.
The analysis also recorded an overall near-neutral sentiment score of approximately -0.01, suggesting a relatively balanced and less emotionally polarised public conversation during the period under review.
According to IMANI PULSE, the dominant trajectory of discourse in May followed a clear progression from infrastructure accountability, to international statecraft, and ultimately to questions of future political credibility.
“The most significant finding from the May 2026 dataset is that Ghanaian social media discourse was driven less by personality politics and more by substantive governance concerns,” the report stated.
It added that citizens were increasingly focused on whether public commitments were being delivered, how economic decisions were being managed, and whether political actors demonstrated credibility in addressing national challenges.
The report compared discourse around former President John Dramani Mahama and Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, noting that while both figures remained central to online discussions, the framing had shifted significantly toward policy evaluation.
For Mahama, conversations were largely driven by infrastructure accountability and international engagement, while discussions around Bawumia focused on economic legacy debates and emerging opposition positioning.
IMANI PULSE further observed that Ghana’s political conversations are evolving into what it described as an “evaluation era,” where voters are more likely to scrutinise delivery, policy consistency, and governance performance than emotional or partisan appeal.
This shift represents a defining change in Ghana’s digital political landscape, where credibility and policy outcomes are becoming central to public judgment of political leadership.
