Adama Barrow (National People’s Party) – the incumbent
Adama Barrow (born 15 February 1965) is a Gambian politician and real estate developer who is the third and current President of the Gambia, in office since 2017.
Born in Mankamang Kunda, a village near Basse Santa Su, he attended Crab Island Secondary School and the Muslim High School. He then worked for Alhagie Musa Njie & Sons, a Gambian energy company, where he became a sales manager. Moving to London in the early 2000s.
After returning to the Gambia in 2006, he founded Majum Real Estate and was its CEO until 2016. He became the treasurer of the United Democratic Party, an opposition party, and then became its leader in September 2016 after the previous leader was jailed.
Barrow won the 2016 presidential election with 43.34% of the vote, defeating long-time incumbent Yahya Jammeh. Jammeh initially accepted the result, but later reneged on this, and Barrow was forced to flee to neighbouring Senegal. He was inaugurated at the Gambian embassy in Senegal on 19 January 2017, and Jammeh was forced to leave the Gambia and go into exile on 21 January. Barrow returned to the Gambia on 26 January.
In November 2021, Adama Barrow announced his candidacy for the 2021 presidential election.
Ousainou Darboe (United Democratic Party)
A lawyer who briefly served as Mr Barrow’s vice-president. He was part of the coalition that brought down Mr Jammeh and is contesting for a fifth time.
Darboe formerly served as Barrow’s Minister of Foreign Affairs from February 2017 to June 2018.
Darboe worked for the Attorney General’s Chambers before entering private practice. He has also served as the vice president of the Gambia Bar Association. He founded the United Democratic Party (UDP) in 1996. It was the main opposition party under the rule of Yahya Jammeh, and Darboe himself stood in the 1996, 2001, and 2006 presidential elections. He was imprisoned in 2016, but released after Barrow’s victory.
Essa Mbye Faal (Independent)
An international lawyer who is a defence counsel at the International Criminal Court (ICC) and a senior partner at Faal and Co.
Faal led the prosecution in the Darfur investigations and as a lead defence counsel for a number of other cases. In 2018, he was appointed as chief prosecutor at the Gambian Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission (TRRC).
He is contesting for the first time.
Mama Kandeh (Gambia Democratic Congress)
A member of the Pan-African Parliament from the Gambia. He is the founding leader of the Gambia Democratic Congress (GDC) political party, which he formed in the summer of 2016. He ran as a candidate in the Gambian presidential election of 2016 and received 17.1% of the votes.
He is backed by former Dictator Yahya Jammeh.
Abdoulie Ebrima Jammeh (National Unity Party)
A former teacher who once headed the country’s civil aviation authority. Contesting for the first time
Halifa Sallah (People’s Democratic Organisation for Independence and Socialism)
Currently a member of the National Assembly representing Serekunda, and the secretary-general of the People’s Democratic Organisation for Independence and Socialism (PDOIS). He served as a spokesman and advisor to President Adama Barrow from during the 2016 presidential election campaign until March 2017.
He is contesting for the fifth time.
