Senegal election delay ruled unlawful
The highest court in Senegal has ruled that the decision to delay this month’s elections goes against the constitution. Both President Macky Sall’s decree and a controversial bill passed by parliament to move the vote to December have been annulled by the Constitutional Council.
The move has sparked widespread protests in the West African country, once hailed as a beacon of democracy in the region. Opposition leaders have decried the delay as a “constitutional coup”.
President Sall cited concerns over the eligibility of opposition candidates as the reason for pushing back the election. His proposal, initially for a six-month postponement, was supported by 105 out of 165 MPs after a heated debate that saw some opposition MPs forcibly removed from the chamber. A last-minute amendment extended the delay to 10 months, setting a new election date of 15 December.
Despite President Sall’s assurance that he would not seek reelection, critics accused him of attempting to retain power or unfairly influencing his successor. Opposition candidates and lawmakers, who had lodged numerous legal challenges against the bill, have been vindicated by the court’s decision.
Leading opposition figure Khalifa Sall, former mayor of Dakar (no relation to the president), denounced the delay as a “constitutional coup”, while another candidate, Thierno Alassane Sall (also unrelated), labeled it “high treason”.
The court acknowledged the impracticality of holding the election on the original date of 25 February, just 10 days away, but urged authorities to arrange it “as soon as possible”.
Mr Sall is yet to react to the ruling. His second term of office expires on 2 April.
While the election could be held before April, the disputes that led to the polls being postponed in the first place remain unresolved, including allegations of corruption in the Constitutional Council and objections from opposition candidates who had been excluded from the candidate list published last month.
Holding the elections using the disputed candidate list could spark renewed unrest and violence by supporters of those barred from contesting, in particular Ousmane Sonko, who is hugely popular among young Senegalese.
Most candidates have not been campaigning since President Sall issued his 3 February decree, hours before campaigns were meant to kick off.
The decision comes on the same day as several opposition politicians and civil society members were released from prison, in what some in the country viewed as a move to appease public opinion.
Senegal had long been seen as one of the most stable democracies in the region. It is the only country in mainland West Africa that has never had a military coup. It has had three largely peaceful handovers of power and until earlier this month had never delayed a presidential election.
