Gambian President Adama Barrow won a second term after the election results were announced on Sunday evening. According to the electoral commission, Barrow obtained more than 53% of the vote of the turnout that was 87% in Saturday’s election, far outstripping his nearest rival, political veteran Ousainou Darboe, who won about 28%. The peaceful election was seen by many as a victory for democracy that helped draw a line under that troublesome period. Though he may face a legal challenge from opposition candidates who rejected the results because of unspecified irregularities.
Adama Barrow when addressing his supporters promised a better future for the country. “I will be the lucky person to be chosen by you. I sincerely assure you, each and every one of you, that I will do all I can and utilise every resource at my disposal to make the Gambia a better place for us all” said the president.
The president, Adama Barrow was faced by five challengers in the election. Three of his rivals before the results were announced rejected the partial results that put him ahead in the election.
After hearing the results, Gambians celebrated in the streets of Banjul.
These elections were seen as a crucial test for the country’s democracy, which took place five years after the defeat of former dictator Yahya Jammeh to Adama Barrow in 2016 and was to be forcibly removed from power. The vote was the first in 27 years without disgraced former President Yahya Jammeh, who was forced into exile in Equatorial Guinea after refusing to accept defeat to Barrow in 2016. The tourism-dependent economy has been hit hard by the pandemic. Barrow’s first term provided a welcome change for many to Jammeh’s brutal tenure. But progress was hobbled by the coronavirus pandemic, which damaged an economy that relies heavily on tourism, as well as exports of peanuts and fish.
