NPP’s Essa Dampha: December’s Presidential Vote Could Deal Darboe His Worst-Ever Loss

By Makutu Manneh

Essa Dampha, a member of the ruling National People’s Party, has predicted that United Democratic Party leader Ousainou Darboe will suffer what he described as the biggest electoral defeat of his political career in the December presidential election.

Speaking on Kerr Fatou’s Politic Kachaa program, Dampha argued that, with the exception of the 2011 presidential election, the upcoming contest could produce Darboe’s poorest electoral performance.

Dampha attributed his assessment in part to changes within the UDP since the 2021 presidential election, pointing to the departure of prominent figures, including Kanifing Municipal Council Mayor Talib Ahmed Bensouda and Karafa Sonko.

He argued that Bensouda played a significant role in mobilizing support for the UDP ahead of the 2021 election, including providing motorcycles and other campaign materials, and said the party had yet to replace the organizational capacity of those who have since left.

“Whom have they replaced these people with?” Dampha said. “Let’s look at the numbers they lost and the new numbers they gained. That should be the assessment.”

Official results from the Independent Electoral Commission show that Darboe finished second in the 2021 presidential election with 238,253 votes, or 27.72 percent, while President Adama Barrow received 457,519 votes, or 53.23 percent.

Looking ahead to December, Dampha predicted that the UDP and the UNITE Party, led by Bensouda, would compete for second place. He asserted that President Barrow would win the election and said UNITE’s immediate political challenge was to displace the UDP as the main opposition force.

Those projections reflect Dampha’s political assessment; the December election has yet to take place.