A fraught presidential election tests Senegal’s status as one of Africa’s most stable democracies
People line up to cast their ballot for legislative elections in Dakar, Senegal, Sunday, July 31, 2022. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)
DATE OF ELECTION
Dec. 15
TYPE OF ELECTION
Presidential election.
WHO’S RUNNING
The election was postponed from Feb. 25 to Dec. 15. Outgoing President Macky Sall cited an electoral dispute between the parliament and the judiciary regarding the candidacies as reason for the delay, which parliament approved and caused major protests in Dakar. Prime Minister Amadou Ba is being backed by Sall and is believed to have a fair chance of winning after the West African nation’s highest election authority disqualified two top opposition leaders, including Ousmane Sonko, who is popular among Senegal’s youth and placed third in the 2019 presidential race. Also contesting are former prime ministers Idrissa Seck and Mahammed Boun Abdiallah Donne, and Bassirou Diomaye Diakhar Faye, presented as a substitute candidate for Sonko.
WHY IT MATTERS TO THE WORLD
This is a high-stakes election for one of Africa’s most stable democracies with 20 candidates, an unusually high number -- only five candidates were involved in the 2019 race. Although Senegal’s elections are known to be peaceful, there have been deadly protests and allegations of opposition clampdown ahead of this year’s vote, raising further concerns about potential threats to democracy in West Africa, which is already grappling with a wave of coups.
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