The opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) has opened nominations for presidential aspirants as it begins the process of electing a flagbearer for the 2028 general elections.

The nomination window, which opened on Tuesday, July 29, 2025, will close on Thursday, August 28, 2025. This timeline was announced in an official statement signed by the party’s General Secretary, Justin Kodua Frimpong.

In what appears to be a strategic build-up to a hotly contested primary, the NPP is requiring all prospective aspirants to pay a non-refundable application fee of GH?100,000 and a filing fee of GH?500,000 — both payable via banker’s draft to the party’s national headquarters in Accra. An additional development levy, yet to be disclosed, will also be mandatory.

Mr Kodua Frimpong said nomination forms are to be collected from the Office of the General Secretary, emphasising that the process adheres strictly to Article 13 of the party’s constitution.

But, even as the race quietly begins, the party has issued a freeze on all campaign activities by presidential hopefuls until after the pending by-election in Akwatia. The suspension, according to the General Secretary, is to enable the party to marshal its full strength in a bid to retain the parliamentary seat.

The NPP’s internal presidential contest is expected to be fiercely competitive, with leading figures already seen as potential contenders. Among them are former Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, outspoken former legislator Kennedy Ohene Agyapong, former Education Minister Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum, former Agriculture Minister Dr Bryan Acheampong and Kwabena Agyei Agyapong.

The party is looking to avoid the internal fractures that sometimes follow a tightly fought presidential primary, and the leadership’s decision to sequence campaign activities around the Akwatia by-election may be seen as a preemptive stabilising measure.