Milestones of a Monarch: Ghana rejects the Monarchy in a referendum

Through her 70 years on the throne, Her Majesty The Queen has seen a lot of history happen and has created a lot of history herself. As Royal Central looks back on her Platinum Jubilee milestones, we are taking a look at when Ghana rejected the monarchy in a referendum in 1960.

The constitutional referendum was held in Ghana on 27 April 1960. The main issue at hand was a change in the country’s status from a constitutional monarchy with Elizabeth II as head of state, to a republic with the presidential system of government. At the time, Dr Kwame Nkrumah was running the country as Prime Minister. He would go on to be the first Prime Minister and President of Ghana, having led the Gold Coast to independence from Britain in 1957. Ultimately, he wanted a new constitution that would make Ghana headed by a president who had broad executive and legislative powers.

When the people of Ghana voted for a change in the country’s status, Prime Minister Nkrumah eventually became president. An election was held alongside the referendum when Nkrumah was voted into his role. He was inaugurated on 1 July 1960, officially replacing the role of Queen Elizabeth II as head of state. This move eliminated the post of governor-general. The governor-general was the representative of the monarch in Ghana who exercised most of the powers of the monarch. Whoever held that role would be appointed for an indefinite term.

Since Ghana was granted independence in 1957 by the Ghana Independence Act, it was promoted to independence by the Statue of Westminster 1931 rather than being established first as a semi-autonomous dominion. The Statue of Westminster 1931 is an act of Parliament that sets the basis for the relationship between Commonwealth realms and the Crown. Under this, the governor-general was to be appointed solely on the advice of the Cabinet of Ghana without British government involvement. There was the exception of Charles Arden-Clarke, the former colonial governor. He temporarily served as governor-general for a short time until he was replaced by William Hare. In the event of a role vacancy, the chief justice served as an officer administering the government.

Four years later in 1964, another referendum was created to strengthen the president’s powers. This referendum turned the country into a one-party state, ending with 99.9% of support in official poll results. To this day, Ghana is still considered a member state of the Commonwealth.