Gambian President Barrow's Party Wins Most Seats in Local Polls

(Bloomberg) -- The party of Gambian President Adama Barrow won the most seats in the country’s first local government election since the end of ex-dictator Yahya Jammeh’s 22-year rule.

Barrow’s United Democratic Party won 62 of the country’s 120 council seats in a poll in which less than half of the West African nation’s 900,000 registered voters participated, according to results released by the Independent Electoral Commission on Friday. Four parties which support Barrow in parliament won 14 seats.

Barrow, 53, defeated Jammeh in presidential elections in December 2016. A month later, the former ruler was ousted by West African leaders after he refused to acknowledge the result, even though he initially congratulated Barrow on his victory.

To contact the reporter on this story: Sanna Camara in Accra at scamara4@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Antony Sguazzin at asguazzin@bloomberg.net, Andre Janse van Vuuren, Jacqueline Mackenzie

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