Ghana elections: Who is running and what’s at stake?

The country’s historically disadvantaged north is set to decide the tight race for the first time.

Voters in the West African nation of Ghana are heading to the polls on Saturday to decide the country’s next parliament and president in tense, tightly contested elections that come amid biting economic hardship and general frustration with outgoing President Nana Akufo-Addo’s government.

The presidential election pits current Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) against his main challenger, former President John Dramani Mahama of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC).

Bawumia and Mahama are both from the historically disadvantaged northern part of the country and have rallied hard to appeal to their support bases. Their approaches to the economy – Ghana’s main issue at present – differ. While the NPP favours a private sector growth approach, the NDC wants to implement more government intervention.

“These elections are unique because the north will likely determine the winner for the first time,” analyst Emmanuel Yeboah of the Ghana Center for Democratic Development (CDD) told Al Jazeera.

One of West Africa’s most prosperous and stable economies, Ghana is known for its largely peaceful transfers of power and its overall security in a region where armed groups hold sway.