Determinants of Voter Participation and Voting Behaviour of Ghanaian University Students in National Elections

Voter participation is the extent to which people take part in national elections. Voting behaviour reflects the decision of individuals on the candidate that would have their vote. The purpose of this study was to examine the determinants of voter participation and voting behaviour of university students in national elections in Ghana. The sociological and rational choice models guided this study. Using the descriptive cross-sectional design, the study sampled 300 undergraduate Social Studies students from the University of Education, Winneba. The proportional stratified random sampling procedure was used in selecting the sample. Questionnaire adapted from the instrument of Roberts, Struwig and Grossberg (2012) was used in collecting data. Mean, Standard Deviation and Linear Multiple Regression were used in analysing the data. The study found that the desire to exercise the right to vote, bring about political change, partake in decision making, contribute to national development and deepening the country's democracy are key determinants of voter participation among students in Ghana. Also, it was found that, even though political factors, individual factors, and socio-cultural factors were statistically significant predictors of voting behaviour among students, political factors emerged as the most significant of all. It was recommended that the Electoral Commission together with management of universities in Ghana, should organize voter education programmes for university students. This would enhance their understanding of the electoral system in order to promote issue-based as opposed to identity-based voting.