Despite being incarcerated, Senegalese opposition leader Ousmane Sonko has officially entered the February presidential election race.
He submitted his candidacy to the constitutional council, even though the state had denied him the necessary documents.
Bassirou Faye, Sonko’s backup, has also submitted his candidacy, as announced by Ousseynou Ly, an official from their dissolved party Pastef.
Facing the same deadline as other candidates, Sonko filed his candidacy by December 26, having gathered the required signatures.
Last week, the national election entity in Senegal failed to provide Sonko’s representative with the essential documents, prompting his lawyers to proceed with the filing, hoping for a more receptive response from the justice system.
“We are certain that his candidacy will be accepted and validated,” Said Larifou, one of his lawyers, said Friday during a press conference in Paris.
“The Constitutional Council is a judicial organ and not political.”
On June 1, Sonko was sentenced to two years in prison for corrupting minors.
Opting not to attend his trial, he was tried in absentia. Since late July, the 49-year-old has been incarcerated on additional charges, including incitement to insurrection, conspiracy with terrorist groups, and jeopardising state security. Sonko vehemently denies these allegations, asserting they aim to hinder his challenge against President Macky Sall in the upcoming February 25 election.
In mid-December, a judge reinstated Sonko on the list of candidates, affirming a previous court order that had been overturned on initial appeal. Faye, also in prison, serves as the backup candidate for the dissolved Pastef party, mandated by authorities in July.
Former Prime Minister Aminata Toure, formerly allied with Sall but now part of the opposition, declared on Monday her candidacy for the presidential election.
