Gendered Voices in Political Communication in Ghana: A Content Analysis of Female Political Communicators on Facebook and X

Abstract

The study explored the ways in which female political party communicators in Ghana utilize Facebook and X to influence political dialogue and gender representation from January 1, 2020, and October 31, 2025. The study concentrated on six notable communicators from the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the New Patriotic Party (NPP), utilizing qualitative content analysis of publicly available posts and related audience engagements. Using framing theory, gender representation theory, and symbolic annihilation as a basis, the analysis categorizes themes, linguistic styles, and visual tactics, traces interaction patterns, contrasts platform impacts and party variations. The research highlights a gap in Ghanaian and African academia that has predominantly focused on elected officials or activists, by emphasizing party communicators who craft and share narratives daily. Methodological rigor is maintained by utilizing a systematic codebook, manifest/latent coding, an audit trail, and reliability cross-checks. Public figures are recognized due to the public and strategic nature of their statements, whereas regular users in comment sections remain anonymous to reduce potential harm. The study finds Ghanaian female party communicators post strategically: Facebook for explanatory community-building, X for rapid rebuttals. Issue-led, professional framing outperforms personality; gendered attacks sometimes force defensive pivots. Audiences diverge by showing support on Facebook but antagonistic on X, with visibility boosted by media/elite retweets. The results provided platform-specific recommendations and SOPs for women's digital participation in Ghana's changing public space.