Voters waiting to cast their ballots in Senegal’s 2019 presidential election. Photo credit: VOA/Seydina Aba Gueye (public domain)

Senegal was supposed to have local elections in June 2019. However, the country’s election commission first postponed to late 2020, and then postponed them yet again, to March 28, 2021. However, the elections have been delayed again, and no new date has been set.

Political Context

Senegal is lauded as one of West Africa’s most stable democracies. However, the political playing field is becoming less even under President Macky Sall, who won re-election in February 2019 amid accusations that he had improperly used state resources to suppress opponents and bolster his campaign.

In that vein, Freedom House downgraded Senegal’s rating from Free to Partly Free in its 2020 Freedom in the World report. 

Curated News and Analysis

Medi1News (February 15, 2021 – in French): Senegal: towards a further postponement of local elections

Dakaractu (January 1, 2021 – in French): Local elections – President Macky Sall puts an end to the suspense: “As long as the audit is not finished we will not hold the elections.”

Manon Laplace, Jeune Afrique (December 3, 2019): Senegal: local elections to be held in March 2021 “at the latest”

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Updated February 25, 2021