Presidential elections were held in

the Gambia The Gambia, officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. Geographically, The Gambia is the List of African countries by area, smallest country in continental Africa; it is surrounded by Senegal on all sides except for ...

on 22 September 2006. Incumbent President

Yahya Jammeh Yahya Abdul-Aziz Jemus Junkung Jammeh (born 25 May 1965) is a Gambian politician and former soldier, who served as President of the Gambia from 1996 to 2017. He was the Chairman of the Armed Forces Provisional Ruling Council (AFPRC) from 1994 ...

was re-elected with 67.3% of the vote.Gambian president is re-elected
''BBC News'', 23 September 2006

Ousainou Darboe A.N.M Ousainou Darboe (born 8 August 1948) is a Gambian politician and leader of the main opposition United Democratic Party (The Gambia), United Democratic Party (UDP). He previously served as Vice-President of the Gambia and Minister of Women's ...

, 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 Electoral fraud, sometimes referred to as election manipulation, voter fraud, or vote rigging, involves illegal interference with the process of an election, either by increasing the vote share of a favored candidate, depressing the vote share o ...

Electoral system

All the 989 polling booths used

marbles A marble is a small spherical object often made from glass, clay, steel, plastic, or agate. These toys can be used for a variety of games called marbles, as well being placed in marble runs or races, or created as a form of art. They are ofte ...

, which were inserted into candidate drums instead of ballot papers due to the high

illiteracy Literacy is the ability to read and write, while illiteracy refers to an inability to read and write. Some researchers suggest that the study of "literacy" as a concept can be divided into two periods: the period before 1950, when literacy was ...

rate. The marble system is only used in

Gambia The Gambia, officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. Geographically, The Gambia is the List of African countries by area, smallest country in continental Africa; it is surrounded by Senegal on all sides except for ...

, where it has been used since 1965.Gambians vote with their marbles
BBC News, 22 September 2006

Electoral system

Results

References

Further reading