The courts have banned a number of top contenders to succeed Sall – most notably popular opposition figure Ousmane Sonko – from running. In June, protests organized by supporters of Sonko, who faced multiple charges that critics said were politically motivated, were among the bloodiest in Senegal's history, resulting in the deaths of more than a dozen people.
Sall's announcement of his decision not to run for re-election was followed by a period of relative calm. But the decision to postpone the vote – announced just hours before the official campaign was due to start – could lead to a new round of protests in Senegal, where frustration with the political process was already high.
The Senegalese election was a rare bright spot for democracy activists in the region, where a number of military leaders have seized power in coups in recent years, most recently in Niger and Gabon. Military juntas also exercise power in Mali, Burkina Faso and Guinea.
In Côte d'Ivoire and Togo, presidents currently serve beyond the two terms stipulated in their constitutions. (Ivory Coast's president said there was a “reset” process, while Togo's legislature changed its law.)
In Senegal, another opposition party, representing the son of former president Karim Wade, who was barred from running because he has dual citizenship, requested the election be postponed on Friday. Due to concerns about the court's decision to prevent Wade and others from running.
But the coalition representing former Dakar Mayor Khalifa Sall responded, saying the postponement would represent an “institutional coup” and create “unprecedented political instability.”
Sall promised on Saturday to hold a national dialogue to ensure the integrity of the elections, but did not provide a timetable.
