Controversies and Fear of Election-Related Violence Ahead of the Presidential poll in Senegal

A briefing by the Institute for Security Studies analyzing the political tensions and potential for violence in Senegal following the Constitutional Court's validation of President Abdoulaye Wade's candidacy for a third term in the February 26 elections.

• The Constitutional Court of Senegal validated the candidacy of incumbent President Abdoulaye Wade for the February 26 elections, which triggered violence from opposition supporters in Dakar, resulting in the death of a police officer and the burning of buildings.
• Opposition figures argued that President Wade's bid for a third term violates the spirit of the 2001 constitutional amendment and Article 27, which limit presidential terms to two. The Court rejected this, ruling that the term limit cannot be applied retroactively to Wade's first term starting in 2000.
• The Constitutional Court invalidated the candidacies of three independent candidates: Youssou Ndour, Abdourahmane Sarr, and Kéba Keinde. The Court found they failed to meet the requirement of 10,000 verified endorsing signatures from registered voters, verifying only 8,911 for Ndour and 8,154 for Keinde.
• Despite the legal validity of the candidacies, there is a high risk of election-related violence before, during, or after the February poll due to opposition vows to continue protesting.
• Opposition unity is hindered by personality conflicts between key figures, specifically Ousmane Tanor Dieng of the Socialist Party (PS) and Moustapha Niasse of the Alliance of Forces of Progress (AFP).

APA

Souaré, I. K. (n.d.). Controversies and Fear of Election-Related Violence Ahead of the Presidential poll in Senegal. Institute for Security Studies. https://issafrica.org/iss-today/controversies-and-fear-of-election-related-violence-ahead-of-the-presidential-poll-in-senegal

Chicago

Souaré, Issaka K. Controversies and Fear of Election-Related Violence Ahead of the Presidential poll in Senegal. Institute for Security Studies, n.d. https://issafrica.org/iss-today/controversies-and-fear-of-election-related-violence-ahead-of-the-presidential-poll-in-senegal.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Souaré |first1=Issaka K. |title=Controversies and Fear of Election-Related Violence Ahead of the Presidential poll in Senegal |publisher=Institute for Security Studies |url=https://issafrica.org/iss-today/controversies-and-fear-of-election-related-violence-ahead-of-the-presidential-poll-in-senegal |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{souarndcontroversies, author = {Souaré, Issaka K.}, title = {{Controversies and Fear of Election-Related Violence Ahead of the Presidential poll in Senegal}}, institution = {Institute for Security Studies}, url = {https://issafrica.org/iss-today/controversies-and-fear-of-election-related-violence-ahead-of-the-presidential-poll-in-senegal}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }