(4 Dec 2021) Lines of voters snaked around corners outside polling stations in Gambia on Saturday as the nation holds a presidential election that for the first time in decades does not include former leader Yahya Jammeh as a candidate.
Polls opened to high turnout, with many people lining up in the voting centers in Banjul, Serrekunda and other cities.
Nearly 1 million voters were expected to drop marbles into one of six ballot bins, each adorned with the face and name of a candidate.
"Everything is going on very smoothly," said Daniel Gomez, a member of the Independent Electoral Commission adding that while the turnout was good, they expected more voters to go to the polls later in the day to cast their ballot.
The candidates include incumbent President Adama Barrow, who defeated Jammeh in 2016 while running as the candidate for an opposition coalition.
Barrow's challengers are former mentor and head opposition leader Ousainou Darboe of the United Democratic Party; Mama Kandeh of Gambia Democratic Congress; Halifa Sallah of People's Democratic Organization for Independence and Socialism; Abdoulie Ebrima Jammeh of the National Unity Party; and Essa Mbye Faal, former lead counsel of Gambia's truth commission, who is running under an independent ticket.
They have all vowed to run under an agenda for change and a stronger economy in the aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic so fewer Gambians feel compelled to travel the dangerous migration route to Europe.
While the 2016 election that removed Jammeh from power after 22 years saw Gambians go from fear to elation, many are still not satisfied with the progress the nation has made.
They want certainty that the new leaders will bring the tiny West African nation of about 2 million toward peace and justice.
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