The Independent Electoral Commission has scheduled the National Assembly election for 9 April, 2022. A total of 53 seats are up for grabs. The IEC has already commenced receiving nomination papers from the aspirants at its regional offices across the country. In this Factsheet, we provide guidance on the rules, processes and procedures with respect to the nomination of candidates for next month’s election.

Schedules for nomination filings 

Aspirants have started filing for their nominations on Saturday, the 5th March 2022 as per the IEC’s procedure. The  Alliance for National Reorientation and Development (ANRD) are scheduled for 9:00 am, the All People’s Party (APP) at noon, and the Alliance for Patriotic Reorientation and Construction (APRC) given a schedule of 3 pm. However, the ARND leader General Lamin Bojang has confirmed to Malagen that they did not put-up candidates because they are part of an alliance with the ruling National People’s Party (NPP). The APP also did not file for nominations but the APRC did.

On Sunday, March 6, Citizens Alliance aspirants filed for their nominations at the IEC regional headquarters where they intend to contest at 9:00 am. The Democratic Party (DP) was scheduled for midday but no aspirants appeared while Gambia Alliance for National Unity (GANU) party that was slated for 3 pm did not turn up as they are in alliance with the ruling NPP.

Three political parties’ aspirants were scheduled for Monday, March 7, to file for nomination for the various constituencies they are intending to seek a mandate. The Gambia Action Party (GAP) which is backing the NPP alliance did not file nomination papers while the aspirants of the Gambia Democratic Congress (GDC) filed their nominations on Monday seeking some constituencies while the Gambia For All did not participate at the given time of 3 pm.

On Tuesday, March 8, aspirants of the Gambia Moral Congress (GMC), Gambia People’s Democratic Party (GPDP), and the National Convention Party (NCP) are scheduled for 9 am, 12 pm, and 3 pm respectively. It is important to note that both GPDP and NCP are members of the ruling party alliance.

On March 9th, the submission of nomination papers would begin with the aspirants of the ruling National People’s Party (NPP) at 9 am at the IEC regional offices across the country. The National Reconciliation Party (NRP), which is a member of the NPP alliance, and the National Unity Party (NUP) are scheduled to file nominations at midday and 3 pm respectively at their various IEC regional headquarters. 

The following day, March 10th, the People’s Democratic Organization for Independence and Socialism (PDOIS) will come first at 9 am as their aspirants will file their documents. The People’s Progressive Party’s (PPP) aspirants are due to appear midday while the UDP aspirants will wrap the day at 3 pm.

The final day of the nomination filing is March 11 which will see the appearance of all the aspirants seeking office as independent candidates. They would appear to file nomination papers between 9 am and 4 pm across all the IEC regional headquarters in the country. However, the IEC has informed that the independent candidates may be invited to submit their nomination papers if there is free time in the schedule depending on the collection of the nomination papers by the political parties. 

Meanwhile, March 12 and 13 are dedicated to receipt of correction on nomination papers between 9 am and 4 pm. There is no public scrutiny as is the case in the presidential election. 

Qualifications the aspirants will be assessed on

According to the Independent Electoral Commission, all the aspirants must fulfill the following requirements before they are given the green light to contest the National Assembly election next month.

• A candidate must show that he is a citizen of The Gambia
• A candidate must attain 21 years of age 
• The candidate must speak the English language proficiently sufficient to allow him or she takes part in open debates 
• The candidate has to be ordinarily resident in the Constituency for a period of at least one year before nomination day
• A candidate shall be nominated by not less than 300 voters whose names appear in the register of voters for the constituency for which he or she seeks to be elected
• Sworn Declaration of Assets
• Tax clearance certificate 
• Payment of deposits of D5000 as amended 
• Representative symbol, colour, and photographs of a candidate 
• A person who is qualified to be registered as a voter under the Constitution and the Election Act may contest as an independent candidate in any election
• A political party or candidate shall accept and abide by the code on election campaign ethics which the Commission prepares
• Presents a letter of leave of absence from employer (if applicable)
• Letter of sponsorship from the party (if applicable) 

Who is not qualified to contest? 

According to Section 90 of the 1997 Constitution, the following persons are not qualified to run for the office of the National Assembly.

• Dual citizenship holders 
• Unsound mind 
• Under death sentence or prison sentence / three years 
• For abuse of office or corruption 
• Adversely named in a Commission of inquiry report published as per law 
• Staff or IEC, participation in voter registration 
• Works in public service 
• Holds a public office created by an Act of Parliament 
• Member of the disciplined force 
• District chief/Alkalo
• Member of local government authority 
• Being declared bankrupt

Where are the nomination papers being received?

Unlike the presidential nominations which were done at the national headquarters of the Independent Electoral Commissionin Kanifing, Bertil Harding Highway, the aspirants seeking clearance to contest the elections have been filing their nomination papers at the regional offices of the IEC located in all seven regions of the country.

• IEC Banjul regional office 
• IEC Kanifing regional office 
• West Coast regional office in Brikama 
• Lower River Regional office in Mansakonko 
• North Bank regional office in Kerewan 
• Central River regional office in Janjanbureh
• Upper River regional office in Basse

How long does it take for candidates to know the fate of their acceptance? 

The IEC’s Director of Training and Communications, Pa Makkan Khan has confirmed that it usually takes a day for the candidates to know if they are accepted as they will be officially communicated to. Those who have missing required documents are notified to make an adjustment which must be made before the nomination process ends.

Dispute resolution mechanism

According to Khan, aspirants who are not satisfied with the outcome of the nomination can file an official complaint at the regional election officers and also at the IEC head office in Kanifing. However, courts are also explorable by the aggrieved parties if they feel to do so, in which the IEC is bound to respect the outcome.

Campaign period 

The official campaign period will start once the candidates have been cleared to contest the election. The campaign begins on the 17 March and ends on the 7th April while on the 8th is a cooling day. 

When is the election?

The National Assembly election will take place on the 9th of April 2022.

Polling station rules:

The polling stations will open across the country between 8 am and 5 pm. Voters are encouraged to turn out in large numbers to vote within the allocated time. People who arrived to vote after 5 pm will not be allowed to vote by the IEC polling officials. However, people who are found in the queues before 5 pm will vote no matter how long the line is.

Vote counting:

There will be spot-counting of the votes as per the amended Election Act.

Results declaration:

The results will be announced by the Chairman of the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC), Alieu Momar Njai and he will declare the winner of each constituency.

Election result petition:

In terms of electoral disputes, candidates who feel that the election processes are not free and fair can file a petition at the Supreme Court of The Gambia.  According to the election petition rules of the Elections Act, the time and place of the trial of each election petition shall be fixed by the Supreme Court. Section 127 (c) of the 1997 Constitution states that “on any question as to whether or not any person was validly elected to the office of President or was validly elected to, or vacated his or her seat in, the National Assembly;” the Supreme Court shall have an exclusive original jurisdiction.