Six to stand for president in Gambia's first election after Jammeh

FILE PHOTO: Gambia's President Adama Barrow addresses the 73rd session of the United Nations General Assembly at U.N. headquarters in New York, U.S., September 25, 2018. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz

BANJUL (Reuters) - Gambian President Adama Barrow will face five challengers in an election on Dec. 4, the first vote in 27 years not to include exiled former leader Yahya Jammeh, who fled the country after refusing to accept his defeat five years ago.

Barrow will be judged on his progress dragging the country out of a Jammeh era characterised by harsh political crackdowns, fear and financial plunder. The election is being held under conditions of economic hardship after the COVID-19 pandemic kept European tourists away from Gambia's beaches.