Senegal’s opposition leader Diomaye Faye to become president

FRANCE 24

While official results of Sunday’s vote were not yet available, the former prime minister who was the other frontrunner, and who was backed by incumbent President Macky Sall, conceded defeat based on preliminary results. Sall followed with congratulations, also naming Faye as the winner.

Faye’s victory reflected frustration among youth with high unemployment and concerns about governance in the West African nation. In his first speech delivered as president-elect late Monday, the former tax inspector promised to a fresh chapter following the months of violence and many political arrests that led up to the election. 

“I pledge to govern with humility and transparency, and to fight corruption at all levels. I pledge to devote myself fully to rebuilding our institutions,” he said, restating promises made during his campaign. 

Faye, who was backed by popular opposition leader Ousmane Sonko, has vowed to improve Senegal‘s control over its natural resources by promoting national companies to prevent the country from falling into what his campaign called “economic enslavement.” He ran in the place of his close ally Sonko, who was barred from running due to a prior conviction.