Chapter 6 prefer to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals of being identified with a particular party. This indicates that more research and attention should be given to the complex area of funding for political parties as they are one of the areas that breed patronage or patron-client relationships in Ghana. Traditional authorities also play a significant role in Ghana's patronage systems. The constitutional ban on chiefs engaging in party politics has not stopped political party leaders from courting or exploiting their support. Gyimah-Boadi puts this in context by stating that'Traditional leaders were prevailed upon to organise grand durbars to showcase the ruling party and its candidates in the elections. It is common practise depending on the incumbent government, to take over funeral ceremonies and there display largesse and great patronage capabilities(Gyimah-Boadi, 2001b). Having highlighted the trends of patronage in Ghanaian politics, we now interrogate the relationship between political patronage and election-related violence in Ghana. Linking Patronage Systems and Electoral Violence Geographically, the occurrence of election-related violence cuts across all the 10 administrative regions in Ghana. However, some areas such as the Northern, Ashanti and Greater Accra regions have the highest incidence of electoral violence. Most of these incidents occur in the regional capitals – Tamale, Kumasi and Accra metropolis(Fayome et al., 2003; Aning and Lartey, 2008). Patronage systems are increasingly becoming breeding grounds for violence. Political leaders have become more careless in their campaign speeches and sometimes promise what they cannot 194