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Gambia's Jammeh loses presidential election to Adamu Barrow Gambia's Jammeh loses to Adamu Barrow in shock election result
(35 minutes later)
The Gambia's president of 22 years Yahya Jammeh will be replaced by a property developer, Adama Barrow, after losing the general election. Yahya Jammeh, The Gambia's authoritarian president of 22 years, has suffered a surprise defeat in the country's general election.
Mr Jammeh, who came to power in a coup in 1994, has agreed to accept defeat, said electoral commission chief Alieu Momar Njie. He will be replaced by a property developer, Adama Barrow, who won more than 45% of the vote.
Mr Jammeh, who came to power in a coup in 1994, has conceded, said electoral commission chief Alieu Momar Njie.
Before announcing the final result, Mr Njie appealed for calm as the country entered unchartered waters.Before announcing the final result, Mr Njie appealed for calm as the country entered unchartered waters.
The Gambia has not had a smooth power transfer since independence in 1965. The Gambia has not had a smooth transfer of power since independence in 1965.
Mr Njie said that Mr Barrow had won Thursday's election by more than 50,000 votes. He runs a property company which he founded in 2006. Mr Barrow won 263,515 votes (45.5%) in Thursday's election, while President Jammeh took 212,099 (36.7%), according to the electoral commission.
Mr Barrow, who runs his own property company, reportedly used to work as a security guard at an Argos department store on London's Holloway Road.
On the electoral campaign, he promised to revive the country's economy, which has forced thousands of Gambians to make the perilous journey to Europe.
'The marbles have spoken' - by Alastair Leithead, BBC Africa correspondent
President Jammeh's defeat comes as a huge surprise. Despite a surge of support for an opposition broadly united behind one candidate, most people expected the status quo to prevail.
Hopes weren't high for a peaceful transfer of power, with a crackdown on opposition leaders months before the polls, the banning of international observers or post-election demonstrations, and then the switching off of the internet.
But in a place where glass beads are used in place of ballot papers, it seems that the marbles have spoken.
The unseating of an incumbent president is not the usual way politics goes in this part of the world - but it's becoming popular in West Africa at least, with Muhammadu Buhari unseating Goodluck Jonathan in Nigeria just last year.
Former businessman Adama Barrow now has his chance to tackle the poverty and unemployment which drives so many young Gambians to join the Mediterranean migrant trail every year.
A devout Muslim, Mr Jammeh, 51, once said he would rule for "one billion years" if "Allah willed it".A devout Muslim, Mr Jammeh, 51, once said he would rule for "one billion years" if "Allah willed it".
"It's really unique that someone who has been ruling this country for so long has accepted defeat," Mr Njie told reporters. "It's really unique that someone who has been ruling this country for so long has accepted defeat," Mr Njie, the electoral commission chief, told reporters.
Analysis: BBC World Service Africa editor Mary Harper
Mr Jammeh's defeat has been greeted with astonishment in The Gambia, where most people expected him to win. He has served four terms as president but now this unpredictable and ruthless man is to be replaced by a property developer.
Mr Jammeh's 22 years in power have brought repression and intolerance to this tiny seaside nation, popular for cheap holidays in the sun.
He has been tough on journalists, the opposition and gay people. He also said he could cure Aids and infertility.
During the campaign, the country's mostly young population seemed to be yearning for change, said the BBC's Umaru Fofana in the capital, Banjul.During the campaign, the country's mostly young population seemed to be yearning for change, said the BBC's Umaru Fofana in the capital, Banjul.
The economic challenges the country faces have forced many to make the perilous journey to Europe, with some drowning on the way, he said.
Human rights groups have accused Mr Jammeh, who has in the past claimed he can cure Aids and infertility, of repression and abuses.Human rights groups have accused Mr Jammeh, who has in the past claimed he can cure Aids and infertility, of repression and abuses.
Several previous opposition leaders are in jail after taking part in a rare protest in April.Several previous opposition leaders are in jail after taking part in a rare protest in April.
Observers from the European Union (EU) and the West African regional bloc Ecowas did not attend the vote.Observers from the European Union (EU) and the West African regional bloc Ecowas did not attend the vote.
Who is Adama Barrow?Who is Adama Barrow?
Gambian officials opposed the presence of Western observers, but the EU said it was staying away out of concern about the fairness of the voting process.Gambian officials opposed the presence of Western observers, but the EU said it was staying away out of concern about the fairness of the voting process.
The African Union did despatch a handful of observers to supervise the vote, however.The African Union did despatch a handful of observers to supervise the vote, however.
The Gambia, a tiny country with a population of fewer than two million, is surrounded on three sides by Senegal and has a short Atlantic coastline popular with European tourists.The Gambia, a tiny country with a population of fewer than two million, is surrounded on three sides by Senegal and has a short Atlantic coastline popular with European tourists.