“THE BATTLE IS THE LORD’S”- RELIGION AS A TOOL FOR POLITICAL BRANDING IN GHANA’S FOURTH REPUBLIC

ABSTRACT Religion is woven into the culture of the Ghanaian people, so much so that it was evidently exploited in the election campaign of the 2012 general elections. According to Dovlo (2005), “it belongs to the African tradition that we cannot easily distinguish between the secular and religious realm, even in politics”. Political elections are usually contested in a democratic state such as Ghana to determine who rules or governs the people of a state. This is the best way by which the electorates’ say will be expressed. Representatives of Ghana’s biggest political parties, the New Democratic Congress and the New Patriotic Party were used in the research so as to utilize insights and explore their expertise on the Ghanaian political terrain. In this research, the phenomenon of the use of religious elements used in election campaigns was interrogated to gain deeper understanding. Two main results; Ghanaians are religious and every campaign message has to be consistent with their values and morals which are more often than not influenced and informed by their religion in order to gain traction. It is recommended that any individual who seeks to run for public office, factor in the social dynamics of the Ghanaian society, especially religion as it informs the core beliefs and value systems of the Ghanaian people so as to get a shot at winning elections