After serving as a Member of Parliament for the Odododiodio constituency on behalf of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) since January 7, 2013, the incumbent MP, Edwin Nii Lantey Vanderpuye, has made the decision to step down.
Consequently, the NDC is currently in the process of selecting a new parliamentary candidate to replace the experienced politician. As of now, three individuals have submitted their nominations to compete for the parliamentary position, with the election scheduled to take place on October 31, 2023.
Nii Adjebu Lamptey, the Chairman of the NDC Elections Committee in the Odododiodio Constituency, has advised party supporters in the constituency to exercise caution in their statements and actions during the campaign period.
Speaking to Citi News at the NDC constituency office, Mr Lamptey advised, “NDC members and supporters, what we are doing now is internal competition, and we pray that all of them will comport themselves so that we can have a peaceful election.
“The filing of nominations has been very peaceful, and we expect that it will continue like that. On Friday, there will be vetting at the regional party office, and on October 31, the elections will come on as planned.”
He was elected as a Member of Parliament (MP) during the 2012 elections, where he competed against Victor Okaikoi of the New Patriotic Party. Vanderpuye expressed great confidence in his chances of winning, making a notable statement in November 2012 that he would concede the seat to Okaikoi if he received less than 65% of the vote.
However, Vanderpuye ultimately won by a smaller margin than anticipated, securing 45,967 votes (63%) compared to Okaikoi’s 26,269 votes (36%) and Emmanuel Odoi of the Convention People’s Party’s 745 votes (1%). In December 2016, Vanderpuye was reelected as the MP for the Odododiodio Constituency with 36,606 votes, representing 57.04% of the total votes.
His closest contender, the candidate from the New Patriotic Party, received 26,671 votes, accounting for 41.56% of the votes. Currently, Vanderpuye serves in Parliament as the ranking member on the Local Government and Rural Development Committee, as well as a member on the Privileges Committee and Appointments Committee.
