After three years of turmoil and political crisis, Senegal began voting on Sunday to choose a new president in an unpredictable election campaign.
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The West African country has around 7.3 million registered voters and two favorites have emerged: former prime minister Amadou Bah, who is in a coalition government, and opposition candidate Bashir Diomaie Faye.
Both men were once tax inspectors, but now they appear to have little in common. Barr, 62, proposes continuity, while Fay, 43, promises fundamental change and left-wing Pan-Africanism.
Both parties say they will emerge victorious in the first round, but 15 other candidates, including the only woman, are likely to run in the second round, although a date has not yet been set.
read moreHow Senegal's presidential election was postponed, revived and brought forward
Former Dakar mayor Khalifa Sall, 68, is seen as having an outside chance.
“This is a symbolic and historic day for me because it was not easy to hold this election but we won it through a great fight,” voter Mohamed Bopp, 42, told AFP in Dakar. he said.
“So I'm very relieved and proud,” he added.
The eventual winner will be tasked with lifting traditionally stable Senegal out of its recent woes and managing revenues from oil and gas reserves that will soon come into production.
Voting ends at 1800 GMT and preliminary results could be known overnight. The first official results are expected to be announced within the next week.
Senegal has traditionally been seen as a beacon of democracy and stability in the coup-prone region, where Russia has grown increasingly influential.
noisy campaign
Hundreds of observers will participate representing civil society, the African Union, the ECOWAS regional group and the European Union.
The tumultuous campaign lasted just two weeks after the election, originally scheduled for February 25th, was cut short after it was significantly postponed at the last minute.
President Macky Sall intervened to delay the presidential vote, leading to riots that left four people dead.
Mr Sall won praise abroad last year when he abandoned the possibility of running for a third term, but said he called off the vote because he feared it would not go smoothly.
read moreDelay in presidential vote triggers crisis, puts Senegal's democratic record at risk
After weeks of political crisis, the country's highest constitutional body intervened and forced the date to be reset to March 24, despite clashing with the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan.
Mr. Ba, Mr. Sall's handpicked successor candidate, positions himself as the last bulwark against “bandits” and urges the people to vote “with an emphasis on experience and ability, rather than entrusting the helm of the country to adventurers.” I called out.
“We don't need officials who require a two-year apprenticeship,” Ba said at his final election rally on Friday.
“We need to strengthen what we have. We need to go faster and further,” he said, pledging to create 1 million jobs over five years.
But he must also face the darker side of Saru's legacy, including mass arrests, persistent poverty and 20 percent unemployment, and the thousands of immigrants who set off on the perilous voyage to Europe each year.
fundamental reform
The recent unrest in Senegal is the latest chapter in violence since 2021, some of which was sparked by the conflict between rebel standard-bearer Ousmane Sonko and the state.
Economic and social tensions, as well as fears that Mr. Sall might run for a third term, fueled the violence, which left dozens dead and hundreds arrested.
The election was also fueled by the rapid passage of an amnesty law that led to the March 14 release of opposition leader Fay and the charismatic Sonko.
Mr. Fay represents Mr. Sonko, but he is only on the ballot because Mr. Sonko is barred from running, making them a package deal in the eyes of voters.
read moreYouth unemployment becomes a key issue in Senegal's presidential election
Both have attacked Ba as “the biggest crisis facing Senegal today.”
They also question where his wealth comes from, branding him a “billionaire civil servant” who would “become a foreign president.”
Fay promised on Friday to bring “fundamental reforms” to Senegal, including guarantees to foreign investors, as well as renegotiating mining, oil and gas and defense contracts.
“From now on, we will be an independent and sovereign nation, and we will cooperate with everyone, but in a win-win partnership,” he said.
The pair hope to capitalize on Sonko's charisma and popular appeal in a country where half the population is under 20.
Sonko has amassed a passionate following among Senegal's youth through his rhetoric about sovereignty and his attacks on elites, multinational corporations and colonial power France.
Experts have warned that tensions could escalate further after Sunday, especially if Ba wins in the first round or Fay fails to advance to the second round.
(AFP)
