Ghana today.
Ghana is regarded as one of Africa's most stable and longstanding democracies. Since the return to civilian rule and the inauguration of the Fourth Republic with the constitution of 1992, Ghana's military has remained outside politics. Democracy has experienced a strong, stable series of political transitions, including the peaceful transition on the death in office of former President John Mills to his constitutionally-designated successor in July, 2012.
In 2012, President John Mahama was declared the winner by a narrow margin in an election widely regarded as free, fair, and transparent. Although the election results were disputed by the main opposition party, the New Patriotic Party (NPP), the protest was made via a constitutionally sanctioned court challenge that offered further proof of Ghana's stable democracy.
Although Ghana has largely escaped the civil strife that has sometimes troubled other West African nations, periodic outbreaks of communal violence do occur as a result of local disputes over land, leadership, ethnic, and religious issues. These seem to be localized in the extreme northeastern part of the country.