Most Ghanaians Still Back President Mahama Despite Dip in Approval – IEA Poll
The majority of Ghanaians continue to endorse President John Mahama’s stewardship eighteen months into his administration, with 58.9% approving of his job performance, a new poll by the Institute of Economic Affairs has found.
The IEA indicated that the results confirm that economic performance remains President Mahama’s strongest source of goodwill, while energy reliability and anti-corruption action will be key tests for the next phase of his administration.
The IEA nationwide survey, conducted in May 2026 across all sixteen regions with over 1,000 respondents, shows the President’s approval remains well ahead of disapproval. 28.4% of Ghanaians disapprove of his performance, while 12.8% expressed no opinion.
The 30.5-percentage-point gap suggests positive assessments still outweigh criticism.
However, approval has slipped from 68% recorded in the IEA’s December 2025 poll.
The IEA notes the decline reflects a public that is broadly supportive but increasingly expectant that macroeconomic gains translate into improved living standards.
Among respondents who approve of the President, 73.5% cited the economy as their main reason, as road infrastructure was the second reason at 16.0%, while energy and electricity ranked third at 2.7%.
The strong endorsement of economic management follows notable gains since January 2025.
The IEA’s release highlighted that inflation dropped from 23.5% to about 3.4% between January 2025 and April 2026 as the cedi appreciated 26% against major currencies, with the Bank of Ghana’s policy rate falling from 27% to 14%, and average commercial bank lending rates declining from around 32% to 20%.
It further cited Ghana’s debt-to-GDP ratio falling from 61.8% at end-2024 to 45.3% by end-2025, which prompted Fitch, Moody’s and S&P to issue a triple sovereign credit rating upgrade.
Yet the economy was also the top concern for disapprovers, cited by 30.9%. The IEA says this is not a rejection of macroeconomic progress, but reflects the lived reality of Ghanaians for whom falling inflation and a stronger cedi have not yet meant lower cost of living, more jobs, or higher incomes.
Other Concerns
Electricity supply was cited by 29.9% of disapprovers, making it the second biggest reason for disapproval.
The poll was conducted shortly after temporary power supply constraints in May 2026 that caused frequent outages nationwide.
Corruption followed at 19.1%, signalling that visible action on the issue remains an expectation many voters hold firmly.
Story by Hajara Fuseini
Click to read more: https://opemsuo.com/author/hajara-fuseini/
