Gambia Election
Key Facts
- Filed. Lawyer Lamin J. Darbo handed nomination papers to the election commission on Wednesday 11 November.
- Short. On Thursday 12 November his papers lacked 840 voter signatures nationally.
- Citizenship. Darbo says he is no longer a British citizen; the commission is still verifying this.
- Deadline. Nominations close on Saturday 14 November; Gambians vote on Saturday 5 December.
- Prediction markets. Polymarket, a prediction-market platform, prices President Adama Barrow at 79.5% to win (13 November, 3:17 a.m. ET).
Lamin J. Darbo, a Gambian lawyer, filed papers on Wednesday 11 November to run for president as an independent backed by the Team Gambia Grand Coalition. The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC), the body that runs elections in The Gambia, had not yet accepted his candidacy at its Thursday 12 November briefing.
The West African country votes on Saturday 5 December, and President Adama Barrow is seeking re-election. For US readers, Darbo’s bid matters to those who follow West African democracy; our report on Barrow’s filing covers the incumbent’s side.
What Darbo Filed
Darbo is standing as an independent, and he says he has resigned from the National Unity Party (NUP), the opposition party he had led. The NUP’s spokesperson said on Tuesday that the party does not endorse the Team Gambia coalition that is backing him.
The Team Gambia Grand Coalition 2026 is an opposition alliance coordinated by Halifa Sallah and Sidia Jatta, veterans of the People’s Democratic Organisation for Independence and Socialism (PDOIS), an opposition party. Our guide to the opposition camps explains how Team Gambia relates to the other alliances.
What Stands Between Darbo and the Ballot
In its Thursday 12 November briefing the IEC said Darbo’s papers “have been processed and found to have a shortage of 840 signatories of registered voters nationally.” Candidates must supply those voter signatures to qualify.
Darbo, 64, says he is no longer a British citizen and presented a UK government document dated 15 October 2026 revoking it. The Gambian constitution bars dual nationals from the presidency, and the IEC says verification “is on going.”
The IEC rejected another aspirant, Bakusa Dukureh of the Gambia Labour Party, a political party, after he publicly accepted holding dual nationality; it also found his school certificate “unauthentic and false.” It rejected Kebba Bojang of the National Democratic Party, another party, over a date-of-birth mismatch.
The same briefing lists five candidacies as accepted: President Adama Barrow of the National People’s Party, opposition leader Ousainou Darboe of the United Democratic Party, Talib Ahmed Bensouda of the UNITE party, the independent Isatou Touray and Modou Lamin Sima of the Alliance of Progressive Citizens. Our full account of that list names the rejected and pending candidates.
Who Is Darbo
Darbo is a lawyer who presents himself as the Team Gambia coalition’s candidate. Do not confuse him with Ousainou Darboe, the long-time leader of the United Democratic Party (UDP), who is a separate, accepted candidate.
What Prediction Markets Say
Polymarket, a platform where traders bet real money on outcomes, prices Adama Barrow at 79.5% and Ousainou Darboe at 14.5% in its “Gambia Presidential Election Winner” market (13 November, 3:17 a.m. ET). The market has US$18,876 traded in total, and Lamin J. Darbo is not among its named candidates.
These prices are bets, not polls, and a market this thin can move on a few trades. They say nothing about whether Darbo will clear the IEC’s checks.
Why we show this: prediction markets turn real-money bets into a live probability that moves within minutes of the news, which is why investors, campaigns and newsrooms in the United States now follow them closely. We show them next to polls and official results, never instead of them.
What It Means for You
The commission’s final list, once the nomination window closes on Saturday 14 November, sets the field for the 5 December vote, so that is the next signal to watch. Travellers and investors with Gambian exposure should watch for that list; our explainer on the voting system shows how the count works.
What Is Not Known
It is not known whether Darbo has supplied the missing 840 signatures since the IEC’s Thursday briefing. It is also unknown whether the renunciation of his British citizenship will be confirmed before the Saturday 14 November deadline.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Lamin J. Darbo?
Lamin J. Darbo is a Gambian lawyer and former leader of the National Unity Party. He is running for president as an independent backed by the Team Gambia Grand Coalition.
Is Darbo officially a candidate yet?
Not yet. On Thursday 12 November the IEC said his papers were 840 voter signatures short nationally and that its checks on his British citizenship, which he says he has renounced, were continuing.
How is Darbo different from Ousainou Darboe?
Ousainou Darboe leads the United Democratic Party and has been accepted as a candidate. Lamin J. Darbo is a different person, running as an independent backed by the Team Gambia coalition.
When is the Gambia’s presidential election?
Gambians vote on Saturday 5 December 2026. The IEC’s nomination period ends on Saturday 14 November.
Sources: Independent Electoral Commission of The Gambia, Presidential Election 2026 Status of Nomination of Candidates, Media Briefing Day 10, 12 November 2026; Polymarket, Gambia Presidential Election Winner market, 13 November 2026.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated AI newsroom. Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief. The Rio Times also runs Ask Rio Times, which answers from 100,000+ of our own articles, the daily Latin America Power Map, and prediction-market odds on elections and markets.. How we use AI · Report an error
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