By Bintou Waggeh
Lamin Ceesay, United Democratic Party (UDP) National Assembly member for Kiang West, has predicted that a large majority of Gambian civil servants will vote against President Adama Barrow in the Dec. 5 presidential election.
In an interview with Kerr Fatou, Ceesay claimed that as many as 90 percent of civil servants could vote against the incumbent, citing what he described as widespread dissatisfaction with the government’s performance.
“I can tell you for free, 90 percent of the civil servants in the country are going to vote against the incumbent come December 5th, 2026,” he said.
Ceesay did not provide polling data or other evidence to support the estimate.
He attributed the alleged dissatisfaction to concerns over the rising cost of living, unreliable electricity, security and the delivery of public services.
According to the UDP lawmaker, these issues had created conditions that could favour political change, but he acknowledged that the opposition’s challenge was to translate public dissatisfaction into votes.
Ceesay said the problems facing The Gambia were serious enough that, in some countries, they could have contributed to the removal of an incumbent government.
He added that opposition parties were discussing strategies to convert public discontent into electoral support.
The lawmaker also identified undecided and “silent” voters as potentially important blocs in the election.
He said these included civil servants, civil society actors, young people and employees of the security services and government institutions.
Ceesay specifically mentioned personnel in the police, military and immigration services, as well as employees of government ministries, departments and agencies.
He argued that some workers might be reluctant to publicly disclose their political preferences because of their positions, but could express their views privately through their votes.
He reiterated that concerns over prices, electricity, security and the quality of public services were among the factors he believed could influence voters’ decisions in December.
President Barrow is seeking re-election on Dec. 5, as opposition parties continue efforts to mobilise support ahead of the presidential poll.
Ceesay’s assertion that 90 percent of civil servants will vote against Barrow remains an unverified political assessment and was not supported by publicly available survey evidence in the interview.