By Fatou Sillah
Dr. Ismaila Ceesay, the country’s Minister of Information, Media, and Broadcasting Services, suggested in a recent interview that a unified opposition coalition ahead of the 2026 presidential elections appears unlikely.
Speaking to West Coast Radio, Dr. Ceesay said discussions about a single opposition candidate are ongoing, but no formal coalition has materialized.
“There is no one candidate. There is no coalition yet, and as far as I am concerned, I don’t see it happening,” Dr. Ceesay said. “And even if it happens, the data is telling us that the president is going to win the elections.”
Dr. Ceesay described the current political landscape as fragmented, with multiple parties and candidates running independently. He argued that public trust in opposition parties remains low, reinforcing the strength of the incumbent president and his alliance.
“The scenario we are having now is we have the president and his alliance, and we have political parties that don’t have credibility; people don’t trust the opposition. That is what is happening,” he said.
He further cited findings from CepRass, a local opinion research group, asserting that the data support the president’s electoral prospects. “This data has really emphasized and validated what we have been saying, that we are going to win the election. The data is very clear, that is what the findings say, that President Barrow and the NPP alliance are in a strong position to win the elections,” he said.
Last week, CepRass released a poll suggesting a competitive race: 49 percent of respondents indicated they would vote for the president’s challenger if elections were held today, while 34 percent said they would support President Barrow.
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