Gambian polling station staff member collects marbles from a box to count the votes for a presidential candidate Ousainou Darboe during the presidential election, which took place on December 4, 2021 in Banjul, Gambia. BANJUL, Dec 5, Reuters -- President Adama Barrow won the early lead in the Gambia presidential election, winning more than half of the votes from the first 17 constituencies where results were announced by authorities on Sunday morning.
Barrow only needs to win more votes than his nearest rival to win a second term in the tiny West African country of 2.5 million people. A result from Saturday's vote is expected to be sometime on Sunday.
Gambia has 53 constituencies in total. Some heavily populated areas could have a significant impact on the final result, as they are yet to be counted.
The vote was the first in 27 years without disgraced former President Yahya Jammeh, who lives in exile in Equatorial Guinea after refusing to accept defeat in 2016 by Barrow.
It was seen as a test of Gambia's democratic progress and ability to leave Jammeh era behind. Five other candidates were in the race with Barrow, including his former mentor Ousainou Darboe. A political veteran, Darboe is considered Barrow's toughest challenger and was only about 30,000 votes behind Barrow on Sunday.
The coronaviruses have hit the heavily tourist-dependent economy of Gambia. It is also a peanut and fish exporter.