- By Mayeni Jones, West Africa Correspondent and James Gregory
- BBC News
February 15, 2024
Updated 47 minutes ago
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Widespread unrest broke out in Senegal following the president's announcement that he would postpone elections scheduled for later this month
The decision to postpone Senegal's elections this month violates the constitution, the country's top court has ruled.
The Constitutional Council canceled both President Macky Sall's decree and a controversial parliamentary bill that postponed the vote until December.
The West African country, once considered a bastion of democracy in the region, has been gripped by widespread protests.
Opposition representatives said it was a “constitutional coup.”
Mr Sall had announced he would postpone the election due to concerns about the electability of opposition candidates.
His proposal was supported by 105 of the 165 MPs after a heated debate in which police removed some opposition MPs from the chamber. A six-month delay was originally proposed, but a last-minute change saw it extended to ten months, meaning a new election date of December 15.
Mr. Sall had reiterated that he had no plans to run for office again. But his critics accused him of either wanting to cling to power or unfairly influencing his successor.
Opposition candidates and lawmakers who had launched a series of legal challenges against the bill will feel vindicated by the court's decision on Thursday evening.
Khalifa Sall, a leading opponent and former mayor of the capital Dakar who is not related to the president, had called the delay a “constitutional coup,” while Thierno Alassane Sall, another candidate, also not related, called it “high treason.” .
The court said it was “impossible” for the election to take place on the original date of February 25 – just 10 days away – but urged authorities to organize it “as soon as possible”.
Mr Sall has yet to respond to the ruling. His second term ends on April 2nd.
Although the elections could take place before April, the disputes that led to the election's postponement remain unresolved, including corruption allegations before the Constitutional Court and objections from opposition candidates who were excluded from the list of candidates published last month.
Conducting the elections with the controversial list of candidates could lead to renewed unrest and violence from supporters of those excluded from running, particularly Ousmane Sonko, who is extremely popular among young Senegalese.
Most candidates have not campaigned since President Sall issued his decree on February 3, hours before the campaign was scheduled to begin.
The decision came on the same day that several opposition politicians and members of civil society were released from prison, in what some in the country saw as an attempt to appease public opinion.
Senegal has long been considered one of the most stable democracies in the region. It is the only country on the West African mainland that has never experienced a military coup. There have been three largely peaceful transfers of power and, until earlier this month, it had never postponed a presidential election.
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Critics accused President Sall of wanting to cling to power