People's Progressive Party

The People's Progressive Party is a political party in the Gambia. It was the dominant ruling party of the House of Representatives and the presidency from 1962 to 1994. The president throughout this time period was Dawda Jawara. The People's Progressive Party lost power after the 1994 Gambian coup d'état, a military coup led by young, junior military officers. The Alliance for Patriotic Reorientation and Construction (APRC) then became the dominant party of the Gambia. The People's Progressive Party remains active, but lacking the same level of support it garnered in the 20th century. History The party was founded in 1959 as the Protectorate People's Party (PPP) and was later changed to the People's Progressive Party. The party won the 1962 general election, and in October 1963, upon the attainment of self-government, their leader, Dawda Jawara, became Prime Minister of the Gambia. With the republican referendum in 1970, Jawara became the first President of the Gambia. The 1981 Gambian coup d'état attempt was an attempt to overthrow the incumbent government when the PPP was in power. It was a civilian led coup-attempt with some support from the Gambia Field Force. The death toll is debated, being anywhere from 500 to 1,000 lives lost. The coup was put down by Senegalese intervention and as a result, Senegal and the Gambia formed the Senegambia Confederation. The People's Progressive Party lost political power following the 1994 Gambian coup d'état. The coup was carried out by military officers in the Gambian National Army (GNA). It was a bloodless coup that managed to overthrow Dawda Jawara. The Gambia was ruled militarily until 1996 when Yahya Jammeh was elected as president with the Alliance for Patriotic Reorientation and Construction (APRC) as his party. The subsequent National Assembly elections brought even more power to the APRC, winning 33 out of the 45 seats.