- This decision stemmed from ongoing investigations into the integrity of two Constitutional Council judges involved in the election process, prompting the need for reconsideration
On Saturday, February 3, Senegalese President Macky Sall declared the indefinite postponement of the presidential election set for February 25, moments before the commencement of official campaigning.
In a national address, Sall revealed the issuance of a decree nullifying the previously established date.
This decision stemmed from ongoing investigations into the integrity of two Constitutional Council judges involved in the election process, prompting the need for reconsideration.
“I will begin an open national dialogue to bring together the conditions for a free, transparent and inclusive election,” Sall added, without giving a new date.
It is the first time a Senegalese presidential election has been postponed. The decision comes following a dispute between the National Assembly and the Constitutional Court over the rejection of candidates. A November 2023 decree signed by Sall set the election for February 25, with 20 candidates in the running but two major opposition figures excluded. Sall had repeatedly said he would hand over power in early April to the winner of the vote.
After announcing he would not run for a third term as president, Sall designated Prime Minister Amadou Ba from his party as his would-be successor. The Constitutional Council has excluded dozens of candidates from the vote, including firebrand anti-system figurehead Ousmane Sonko, who has been jailed since July 2023, and Karim Wade, son of former president Abdoulaye Wade.
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