Ghana’s Fourth Republic and Transition to Democracy : A study by the “Two-turnover test” of Ghana’s transition to democratic governance

Abstract: Transition to democracy have been a complex and difficult process for many thirdwave democratic countries across the globe. In Ghana, past military governments, role of political parties, rule of law, ethnocentrism and human rights abuses and have played a key role in Ghana’s 1992 Constitution and fourth attempt to democratic governance. In addition, eight successful national elections and five change of governments from 1992-2020 have made Ghana one of the shining examples of democracy in West Africa. The aim of this study has been tounderstand and assess the impact of national elections and change of government in Ghana’s transition to democracy from 1992-2020. To achieve this, I have selected secondary sources from academic books, journals, reports, and have implemented Samuel Huntington’s “Two-turnover test” theoretical concept to examine how national elections and change of governments have contributed to Ghana’s transition to democracy from 1992 -2020. My key finding is that national elections and change of governments have not completely contributed positively to the transition to democracy in Ghana.