Senegal leaves presidential election list mainly unchanged
Wednesday February 21 2024
Senegal's President Macky Sall. PHOTO | REUTERS
Senegal's Constitutional Council on Tuesday published an amended list of candidates for a presidential election delayed from February 25 to a yet undecided date, removing just one candidate from the initial list because she withdrew her application.
The council last week overturned a bill that delayed the vote to December - a move that had plunged the country into unchartered constitutional territory and stoked public anger against the government.
President Macky Sall, who said the postponement was needed due to a dispute over the candidate list, later pledged he would abide with the court's decision and hold consultations to organise the vote as quickly as possible.
Read: Senegal's Sall promises to hold delayed presidential vote
The new candidate list was almost unchanged from the original list for the February 25 vote apart from removing opposition contender, Rose Wardini, bringing the number of candidates down to 19 from an initial 20.
The council said Wardini had withdrawn her application without providing further detail.
Prominent opposition figures including the firebrand jailed politician Ousmane Sonko and Karim Wade, the son of former president Abdoulaye Wade, remain excluded.