President John Dramani Mahama has once again made it clear: he will not contest Ghana’s 2028 general election. Speaking from Singapore—where he began a three-day state visit on 26 August 2025—Mahama reaffirmed his respect for the constitutional two-term limit and said stepping down gives him the freedom to enforce strong fiscal discipline.
For months, political analysts and members of the public speculated that President Mahama might consider a comeback in 2028.
He has now put those rumors to rest. By ruling out a third bid, he stressed that “I can hold the line when it comes to fiscal discipline,” without the pressure of electoral ambition influencing his decisions.
During discussions with Singapore’s President Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Mahama not only reaffirmed his respect for Ghana’s term limit but also criticized the common tendency of governments to bypass fiscal safeguards to gain favor during election seasons—a cycle he is determined to end.
On this state visit, Mahama is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, deliver the keynote address at the 8th Africa–Singapore Business Forum (ASBF), and lead discussions at a Ghana–Singapore Investment and Business Forum aimed at strengthening bilateral trade and investment ties.
Mahama’s reaffirmation is seen as a confidence-building move—both for internal governance and for international partners—with commentators noting that embedding fiscal discipline without upcoming election pressures could inspire more stable policymaking.
John Dramani Mahama, who previously served as Ghana’s president from 2012 to 2017, won a second, non-consecutive term in the 7 December 2024 election, becoming the first in Ghana’s history to do so. He was inaugurated on 7 January 2025.
