2006 Gambian presidential election

Presidential elections were held in the Gambia on 22 September 2006. Incumbent President Yahya Jammeh was re-elected with 67.3% of the vote.^[1] Ousainou Darboe, who finished second with 27% of the vote, rejected the official results, saying that the elections had not been free and fair and that there was widespread voter intimidation.^[2]

2006 Gambian presidential election

← 2001 22 September 2006 2011 →
Registered	670,336
Turnout	58.6%
Nominee Yahya Jammeh Ousainou Darboe Halifa Sallah Party APRC UDP PDOIS Alliance ARC NADD Popular vote 264,404 104,808 23,473 Percentage 67.33% 26.69% 5.98%
President before election Yahya Jammeh APRC Elected President Yahya Jammeh APRC

Electoral system

All the 989 polling booths used marbles, which were inserted into candidate drums instead of ballot papers due to the high illiteracy rate. The marble system is only used in Gambia, where it has been used since 1965.^[3]

Results

Candidate		Party	Votes	%
	Yahya Jammeh	Alliance for Patriotic Reorientation and Construction	264,404	67.33
	Ousainou Darboe	United Democratic Party	104,808	26.69
	Halifa Sallah	National Alliance for Democracy and Development	23,473	5.98
Total			392,685	100.00
Registered voters/turnout			670,336	–
Source: Adam Carr

References

1. Gambian president is re-elected BBC News, 23 September 2006
2. Gambian opposition claims fraud BBC News, 25 September 2006
3. Gambians vote with their marbles BBC News, 22 September 2006

Further reading

• Saine, Abdoulaye (2008). "The Gambia's 2006 Presidential Election: Change or Continuity?". African Studies Review. 51 (1): 59–83. doi:10.1353/arw.0.0029. JSTOR 27667291. S2CID 145287607.