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Gambian Ruling Party Asks Court to Void Election Results


In a Thursday, Dec. 1, 2016 file photo, Gambia's president Yahya Jammeh shows his inked finger before voting in Banjul, Gambia.
In a Thursday, Dec. 1, 2016 file photo, Gambia's president Yahya Jammeh shows his inked finger before voting in Banjul, Gambia.

Members of Gambia's ruling party asked the supreme court Tuesday to void December 1 election results, following their leader's loss.

President Yahya Jammeh initially conceded defeat to election winner Adama Barrow but withdrew his concession Friday, saying "unacceptable errors" were found by election officials.

The appeal was made the same day that a delegation of West African leaders arrived in the capital city to urge Jammeh to concede the election after over two decades in office.

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari told Reuters that Jammeh had been "very receptive" to the delegation.

Earlier in the day, security forces entered the electoral commission office and instructed the chairman to leave. They have since blocked access to the building.

Jammeh, 51, has ruled the West African nation since taking power in a military coup in 1994. He won four subsequent elections that critics said were neither free nor fair, and supported a 2002 constitutional amendment that removed presidential term limits. He once said he could rule Gambia for "a billion years."

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