Why was the Senegal election delayed?

Senegal President Macky Sall has scheduled a delayed presidential election for March 24, bringing a month of confusion to an end.

WHAT WAS THE CRISIS ALL ABOUT?

Sall initially delayed the Feb. 25 election due to disputes over the list of candidates. Parliament then voted to hold the vote on Dec. 15 and extended Sall’s mandate which ends on April 2, but this was ruled unlawful by the Constitutional Council.

A national dialogue set up by Sall proposed the election be held on June 2. But the Constitutional Council ruled against that date as well, insisting that the election be held before the end of Sall’s mandate.

The setting of the date could allay fears of authoritarian overreach in one of coup-hit West Africa’s more stable democracies.

However, the parties will have less time to campaign and the electoral commission to organise the vote.

WHY DID SALL CALL FOR A POSTPONEMENT?

Sall, 62, who has reached the constitutional limit of two terms in power, said he delayed the poll due to the dispute over candidates and alleged corruption within the constitutional council that approved the list. The council has denied the accusations.

The opposition Senegalese Democratic Party (PDS), whose candidate was excluded from the final list because of dual nationality issues, supported the delay and proposed a postponement bill in parliament before Sall’s address.

WHAT DID HIS OPPONENTS SAY?

Other opposition and civil society groups rejected the postponement, with some accusing Sall of orchestrating an “institutional coup” to extend his tenure.

Several of the 19 presidential candidates and a group of opposition lawmakers filed legal challenges to the delay to the constitutional council.

Some opposition leaders had called for the vote to be held before April 2, when Sall’s mandate expires.

WHY IS THE DELAY SIGNIFICANT?

Senegal had never delayed a presidential vote. Its four largely peaceful transitions of power via the ballot box since independence from France in 1960 built up its reputation as one of West Africa’s strongest democracies.

The abrupt postponement dismayed those who believed Senegal would stick to a standard electoral course that has become increasingly uncommon in West Africa, where military takeovers and constitutional manoeuvring have forced democracy into retreat in many countries.

The Economic Community of West African States, several opposition leaders and western partners urged the authorities to accept the constitutional council’s ruling on Feb. 15 that the postponement was unlawful.

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

The presidential election is to be held on March 24 and campaigning is expected to start soon.

The new date could help to ease tensions within opposition parties. However, there are concerns of a low turnout because campaigning and the election will be held during Ramadan when many in the Muslim-majority nation will be fasting.