Gambian Electoral Laws

Election Act 1963 (Amended to 1969)

An act to amend and consolidate the law relating to elections to the House of Representatives, and to provide for elections to such local government bodies.

Elections Decree (Decree 78 of 1996)

Election law decreed by the Armed Forces Provisional Ruling Council that came into force on 2nd January 1996.

Elections Act: Chapter 3:01

Decree No. 78 of 1996 amended by Decree No. 91 of 1996; Decree No. 93 of 1996; and Act No. 7 of 2001

Related links:

• Code on Election Campaign Ethics Order: Cap. 3:01

• Election Petition Rules

Elections (Amendment) Act, 2017

On 28 February 2017, the National Assembly passed the Elections (Amendment) Act 2017 “to encourage the widespread participation of the ordinary citizenry in the new democratization dispensation.” The President assented to the Act on 8 March, 2017.

The amendment was a response to the major shrinking of the political space during Jammeh’s era. In July 2015, the Elections (Amendment) Act, 2015 was passed and signed by Jammeh on 20 July 2015.  Candidates for President were required to pay D 500,000 (approximately USD 12,500) raised from D 10,000 (approximately USD 250); the fee for candidates for the National Assembly was increased from D 5,000 (approximately USD 125) to D 50,000 (approximately USD 1,000) and candidates for local council office were to pay D 10,000 (about USD 200). Opposition political parties not only regarded the increases as unreasonably high but also as a ploy by the government to drastically limit the participation of the opposition in elections. 

Following the 2017 amendment the exorbitant fees back to their initial amounts: President D10,000; National Assembly D5,000; Mayor D 2,500; and Local Council D1,250.