1996 Gambian presidential election

(Redirected from Gambian presidential election, 1996) Elections

← 1992

29 September 1996

2001 →

Registered

446,541

Turnout

88.35%


Nominee	Yahya Jammeh	Ousainou Darboe	Hamat Bah
Party	APRC	UDP	NRP
Popular vote	220,011	114,177	21,759
Percentage	55.77%	35.84%	5.52%

President before election

Yahya Jammeh
Military (AFPRC)

Elected President

Yahya Jammeh
APRC

Politics of the Gambia


Constitution Human rights LGBT rights
Executive President (list) Adama Barrow Vice-President Badara Joof Cabinet
Legislative National Assembly Speaker: Fabakary Jatta
Judiciary Supreme Court Chief Justice: Hassan Bubacar Jallow
Elections Political parties Politicians Recent elections Presidential: 2016 2021 Parliamentary: 2017 2022
Administrative divisions Regions Districts
Foreign relations Ministry of Foreign Affairs, International Cooperation and Gambians Abroad Minister: Mamadou Tangara Diplomatic missions of / in the Gambia Passport Visa requirements Visa policy
The Gambia portal Other countries
v t e

Presidential elections were held in the Gambia on 29 September 1996. The first since the 1994 military coup led by Yahya Jammeh, they were also the first elections to be held under the new constitution, and the first presidential elections held separately from parliamentary elections. Voter turnout was exceptionally high, with 88% of the 446,541 registered voters voting.

Despite originally stating that he did not intend to run, Jammeh entered the race shortly before the elections. He emerged victorious with 55.8% of the vote, winning the most votes in every district except Mansa Konko (where UDP candidate Ousainou Darboe was the most voted-for).

The elections were criticised as unfair due to government crackdowns on journalists and opposition leaders at the time.

Results


Candidate		Party	Votes	%
	Yahya Jammeh	Alliance for Patriotic Reorientation and Construction	220,011	55.77
	Ousainou Darboe	United Democratic Party	141,387	35.84
	Hamat Bah	National Reconciliation Party	21,759	5.52
	Sidia Jatta	People's Democratic Organisation for Independence and Socialism	11,337	2.87
Total			394,494	100.00

Valid votes			394,494	99.99
Invalid/blank votes			43	0.01
Total votes			394,537	100.00
Registered voters/turnout			446,541	88.35
Source: African Elections Database

The number of invalid votes was extremely low due to the country's unique voting system of putting marbles into drums, which meant that almost no votes were rejected.

References

Wright, Donald (2010). The World and a Very Small Place in Africa: A History of Globalization in Niumi, The Gambia (third ed.). Armonk, New York: M.E. Sharpe. p. 217. ISBN 978-0-7656-2483-3.
French, Howard W. (September 28, 1996). "Military Ruler in Gambia Defeats Rivals in Election". The New York Times.

v t e Elections and referendums in The Gambia
Presidential elections	1982 1987 1992 1996 2001 2006 2011 2016 2021
Parliamentary elections	1947 1951 1954 1960 1962 1966 1972 1977 1982 1987 1992 1997 2002 2007 2012 2017 2022
Local elections	2002 2008 2013 2018 2023
Referendums	1965 1970 1996

Categories: