How Constituency Gatekeepers Shape Parliamentary Behaviour in Ghana

Abstract Research has extensively examined how different candidate selection rules shape legislators’ representational behaviour. Yet far less attention has been paid to constituency-specific nomination strategies adopted by parties operating under the same formal rules and their effects on post-election legislative behaviour. This article argues that, regardless of national party rules, constituency parties apply restrictive candidate selection criteria in electorally safe constituencies but adopt more permissive criteria in competitive ones. In safe constituencies, where the threat of defeat is low, candidacy is confined to highly loyal members. However, in competitive constituencies, selection is comparatively permissive. Restricting candidacy induces a stronger post-election focus on parliamentary activity, whereas more permissive procedures encourage constituency-centred representation. The study assesses these claims using evidence from the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) 2020 parliamentary ­primaries in Ghana. Drawing on interviews, press reports, parliamentary records, and election data, the analysis shows that in the NPP’s safe constituencies, loyal candidates were selected and subsequently devoted limited effort to constituency representation. In contrast, MPs elected from competitive constituencies, who emerged from more permissive primaries, devoted greater attention to constituency representation than to plenary activity.