Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson has taken the lead in the race to become the National Democratic Congress (NDC) flagbearer for the 2028 general election, according to a new poll by Global InfoAnalytics.
The survey, conducted from September 11 to 13, 2026, shows Dr. Ato Forson polling at 32% among NDC delegates, up from 22% in the organisation’s July 2026 poll.
NDC National Chairman General Asiedu Nketia, who previously led the race, has dropped from 27% to 23%, placing him second.
Former Education Minister Prof. Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang is on 3%, down from 7%, while Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu has declined slightly from 6% to 5%.
Former Chief of Staff Julius Debrah is on 4%, down from 5%, while Prof. Joshua Alabi has increased from 1% to 2%. Energy Minister Eric Opoku remains at 1%.
The proportion of undecided delegates has also declined from 30% in July to 28%.
Ato Forson gains ground across regions
The survey indicates that Dr. Ato Forson is leading in the Ashanti, Central, Eastern, Greater Accra, Western and Western North regions, and has, for the first time, taken the lead in the Bono Region.
General Asiedu Nketia, meanwhile, maintains leads in the Ahafo, Bono East, North East, Savannah, Oti, Upper East, Upper West and Volta regions.
Haruna Iddrisu leads in the Northern Region.
According to Global InfoAnalytics, Dr. Ato Forson made significant gains in the swing regions compared with the July survey, increasing his support by seven percentage points. His support in Akan-dominated regions reportedly increased by 16 percentage points.
General Asiedu Nketia recorded a 10-percentage-point gain in the Volta/Oti bloc, while Haruna Iddrisu gained three percentage points in the northern bloc.
Ato Forson leads Nketia in head-to-head contest
The poll also shows Dr. Ato Forson strengthening his position in a hypothetical head-to-head contest with General Asiedu Nketia.
Dr. Ato Forson now leads with 41%, up from 33% in July, while General Asiedu Nketia has dropped from 34% to 30%. Undecided delegates in the matchup have declined from 33% to 29%.
However, General Asiedu Nketia maintains a significant advantage over Haruna Iddrisu in a head-to-head contest, leading with 41% against Iddrisu’s 11%, while 48% remain undecided.
The NDC chairman also leads Prof. Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang by 44% to 7%, with 49% undecided, and leads Julius Debrah by 41% to 11%, with 48% undecided.
Delegates favour Nketia remaining chairman
The survey further examined whether delegates believe General Asiedu Nketia should remain national chairman of the NDC.
It found that 58% agreed that he should stay on as chairman, while 21% disagreed and 20% expressed no opinion.
The figure represents a slight decline from July, when 61% supported his continued tenure, while 25% disagreed.
Interestingly, among delegates who supported General Nketia remaining chairman, 54% preferred Dr. Ato Forson as the party’s flagbearer, compared with 19% for Nketia, while 27% were undecided.
Majority want an economist to face Bawumia
The survey also found that a majority of NDC delegates support the idea of the party selecting an economist as its 2028 presidential candidate to face former Vice-President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, who is also an economist.
According to the poll, 56% of delegates agreed with the proposal, while 20% disagreed and 24% had no opinion.
Among delegates who favoured an economist, 55% preferred Dr. Ato Forson, compared with 22% for General Asiedu Nketia, while 23% were undecided.
Vanderpuye, Ofosu Ampofo tied in chairman race
The poll also examined the contest for the position of NDC national chairman.
Former Greater Accra Regional Minister Nii Lantey Vanderpuye and former National Chairman Samuel Ofosu Ampofo are tied at 17% each.
Vanderpuye’s support has fallen by 10 percentage points from nearly 27% in July, while Ofosu Ampofo has declined by two percentage points.
Other contenders include Awudu Sorfo Azorka on 5%, Alhaji Sinare on 3%, Goosie Tanoh on 2%, and Kwasi Opong-Fosu and Nii Armah Ashitey on 1% each.
A significant 53% of delegates remain undecided.
Global InfoAnalytics said the inclusion of Goosie Tanoh, who is in charge of the government’s 24-Hour Economy programme, did not materially alter the race, with Vanderpuye and Ofosu Ampofo remaining the leading grassroots choices.
Survey methodology
The latest poll sampled 3,615 NDC delegates from the 7,600 delegates surveyed in July 2026.
Global InfoAnalytics said it used random-probability telephone sampling, with a completed-response rate of 93%.
The findings suggest a notable shift in the NDC flagbearer contest, with Dr. Ato Forson emerging as the leading candidate among delegates for the first time, while General Asiedu Nketia continues to maintain strong support in several regions and in head-to-head contests against some of the other contenders.
Source: www.kumasimail.com
