Ghanaians have the opportunity every four years to elect their President and Parliamentarians.The Electoral Commission (EC) of Ghana presents the qualified presidential aspirants to theelectorates to vote on them. As regards, political parties are uncertain of their fates until the EChas published the names of parties whose forms have been accepted, hence qualified to contest inthe general elections. The EC often publishes the qualification notice three months to the generalelections. Some have argued that three months to the elections is too short for an effectivepolitical campaign. They have suggested six months to the elections for the EC to make the(dis)qualification pronouncement. You are to conduct a research to find out whether the(dis)qualification pronouncement date (i.e. early or late) affects election results obtained bypolitical parties. Also, find out whether the number of times a political party campaigns, where(places) campaigns are held, and when political party starts its campaign affect political parties’election results.Attempt the following questionsa. Provide a topic/title for the research.b. State the dependent variable and four independent variables.c. State the general objective of the study.d. What are the specific objectives?e. What are the research questions?f. State the null and alternative hypotheses.g. Should primary or secondary data be used for this study? Explain your answer.h. What is the population of this study?i. What sampling technique would you use to select the sample from the population?Explain your answer.

a. Provide a topic/title for the research.

• Impact of (Dis)qualification Pronouncement Date on Election Results and Campaign Factors in Ghana.

b. State the dependent variable and four independent variables.

• Dependent variable: Election results obtained by political parties.
• Independent variables:
  1. (Dis)qualification pronouncement date
  2. Number of times a political party campaigns
  3. Places where campaigns are held
  4. Start date of political party's campaign

c. State the general objective of the study.

• The general objective of the study is to examine the relationship between the (dis)qualification pronouncement date and election results, as well as the impact of campaign factors on political parties' election results in Ghana.

d. What are the specific objectives?

• The specific objectives of the study are to:
  1. Determine whether the (dis)qualification pronouncement date affects election results obtained by political parties.
  2. Investigate the influence of the number of times a political party campaigns on election results.
  3. Analyze the impact of campaign locations on political parties' election results.
  4. Assess the relationship between the start date of a political party's campaign and their election results.

e. What are the research questions?

• The research questions are:
  1. Does the (dis)qualification pronouncement date affect election results obtained by political parties?
  2. How does the number of times a political party campaigns influence their election results?
  3. What is the impact of campaign locations on political parties' election results?
  4. Is there a relationship between the start date of a political party's campaign and their election results?

f. State the null and alternative hypotheses.

• Null hypothesis: The (dis)qualification pronouncement date, number of campaign times, campaign locations, and start date of a political party's campaign have no significant effect on election results obtained by political parties.
• Alternative hypothesis: The (dis)qualification pronouncement date, number of campaign times, campaign locations, and start date of a political party's campaign have a significant effect on election results obtained by political parties.

g. Should primary or secondary data be used for this study? Explain your answer.

• Primary data should be used for this study. Since the research aims to investigate the specific impact of (dis)qualification pronouncement date and campaign factors on election results in Ghana, primary data collection methods such as surveys, interviews, and observations would provide more accurate and relevant information.

h. What is the population of this study?

• The population of this study is the electorate in Ghana who participate in the presidential and parliamentary elections.

i. What sampling technique would you use to select the sample from the population? Explain your answer.

• A stratified random sampling technique would be appropriate for selecting the sample from the population. This technique involves dividing the population into different strata based on relevant characteristics (e.g., geographical regions, age groups), and then randomly selecting participants from each stratum. This ensures that the sample represents the diversity of the population and allows for more accurate generalizations to be made.