Senegal Announces New Date for Delayed Presidential Election

Following weeks of protests, President Macky Sall's government has announced a presidential election will take place later this month.

Senegal's government announced on Wednesday that the delayed presidential election will take place on March 24.

On February 3, President Macky Sall announced the postponement of elections scheduled for February 25, triggering widespread uproar in a country that many observers view as a stable democracy.

The Senegalese Constitutional Council declared Sall's postponement of the election null and void and on Wednesday said arranging the vote for a date after his mandate expires on April 2 would be unconstitutional.

Government dissolved

The electoral crisis emerged after a thwarted bid by authorities to postpone the vote to December.

"The President of the Republic informed the Council of Ministers of the setting of the date of the presidential election for Sunday March 24, 2024," government spokesperson Abdou Karim Fofana said in the statement on Wednesday.

Also on Wednesday, Sall dissolved the Senegalese government, replacing Prime Minister Amadou Ba with Interior Minister Sidiki Kaba. The reshuffle would allow Ba to focus on his electoral campaign, the presidency said.

rmt/lo (AP, Reuters)

AllAfrica publishes around 500 reports a day from more than 100 news organizations and over 500 other institutions and individuals, representing a diversity of positions on every topic. We publish news and views ranging from vigorous opponents of governments to government publications and spokespersons. Publishers named above each report are responsible for their own content, which AllAfrica does not have the legal right to edit or correct.

Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica. To address comments or complaints, please Contact us.