The Gambia - Political Parties
Before the coup d'etat in July 1994, The Gambia was one of the oldest existing multi-party democracies in Africa. It had conducted freely contested elections every 5 years since independence. After the military coup, politicians from deposed President Jawara's People's Progressive Party (PPP) and other senior government officials were banned from participating in politics until July 2001.
Main Political Parties:
- APRC - Alliance for Patriotic Reorientation and Construction
- GPP - Gambian People's Party
- PPP - Progressive People's Party
- UDP - United Democratic Party
The People's Progressive Party (PPP), headed by former president Jawara, had dominated Gambian politics for nearly 30 years. After spearheading the movement toward complete independence from Britain, the PPP was voted into power and was never seriously challenged by any opposition party. The last elections under the PPP regime were held in April 1992.
Following the coup in July 1994, a presidential election took place in September 1996, in which retired Col. Yahya A.J.J. Jammeh won 56% of the vote. The legislative elections held in January 1997 were dominated by the APRC, which captured 33 out of 45 seats. In July 2001, the ban on Jawara-era political parties and politicians was lifted. Four registered opposition parties participated in the October 18, 2001, presidential election, which the incumbent, President Yahya Jammeh, won with almost 53% of the votes. The APRC maintained its strong majority in the National Assembly in legislative elections held in January 2002, particularly after the main opposition United Democratic Party (UDP) boycotted the legislative elections.
President Jammeh won the September 2006 elections with 67% of the vote while the opposition alliance won a total of 27%. In the January 2007 parliamentary elections, Jammeh's APRC won 42 of the available 48 seats. While both the September and January elections were declared credible, several sources reported increased oversight of journalists in the preceding months. A failed coup in March 2006 had a major effect on The Gambia's political climate. Since then President Jammeh has taken far-reaching steps to maintain power.
In 2012 voters elected members of the national assembly. Six of the seven opposition parties boycotted the poll after the IEC refused to accept the demands they had submitted, including for a postponement of the election. President Jammeh’s party, the APRC, won 43 seats, the opposition National Reconciliation Party (NRP) one seat, and independent candidates four seats.
During local elections in 2013, independent candidates won 10 of the 45 wards in which they competed. The ruling APRC party and the NRP were the only parties that participated. Incumbent Mayor of Banjul Samba Faal (APRC) lost to independent candidate Abdoulie Bah by a wide margin. In April 2013, before the election, the APRC expelled Bah from the party, citing “manners incompatible with the Party’s code of conduct.” Bah then decided to run as an independent candidate and focused on the poor state of roads in Banjul. In March 2014 Bah and two other independent candidates who had left the APRC earlier rejoined the party.
The main opposition political parties condemned the president’s 2015 declaration of an Islamic state. The leaders of the United Democratic Party and the People’s Democratic Organization for Independence and Socialism issued public statements condemning the declaration, and labeled it unconstitutional. The Standard (owned by the minister of communications) and The Observer (government-owned) normally supportive of the ruling party, reported the president’s declaration of an Islamic state but did not comment.
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