Senegal's incumbent-backed candidate concedes to opposition contender in presidential election

DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — Senegal’s little-known, 44-year-old opposition leader Bassirou Diomaye Faye appeared set Monday to become the country’s next president, less than two weeks after being released from prison to run in the election.

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.

Faye’s expected victory reflected frustration among youth with high unemployment and concerns about governance in the West African nation.

Faye, who was backed by popular opposition leader Ousmane Sonko, has vowed to protect Senegal from corruption and interference from foreign powers like former colonial master France. Sonko, who was also released on March 14 after months in prison to jubilant celebrations in the capital, was barred from running due to a prior conviction and Faye ran in his place.

There was no immediate comment from the winning team, but a news conference was hastily scheduled to take place that evening.

Sall, who triggered violent protests earlier this year when he unsuccessfully tried to postpone the election until the end of the year, also congratulated Faye in a statement. His former prime minister and the loser in the race, Amadou Ba, wished Faye success in a statement shared by his campaign team.

The election on Sunday followed months of unrest ignited by Faye and Sonko's arrest last year, and concerns that the president would seek a third term in office despite constitutional term limits. The violence shook Senegal’s reputation as a stable democracy in a region that has seen a wave of coups. Rights groups said dozens were killed in the protests, while some 1,000 people were jailed.

The expected winner of the election, Faye is a former tax collector and was little known until Sonko named him as his heir.

“I would even say that he is more honest than me. I place the project in his hands,” Sonko told supporters at a joint news conference in March of last year. Weeks later, Faye was arrested and jailed on various charges, including defamation.

Alioune Tine, founder of Afrikajom Center, a Senegalese think tank, said the outcome of the vote proved Senegal would survive after a difficult year that had undermined the population’s faith in democracy.

“From prison to the presidential palace,” said Tine. “The only country in Africa capable of withstanding a disease of its democracy that has shaken all its institutions, profoundly shaken its society, only to recover from it.”

International analysts said a change in leadership in Senegal would come as a relief after months of violence, but raised new questions about the foreign policy of the new government at a time when the coastal nation is becoming an oil and gas producer.

“A win by the opposition also means major changes ahead in domestic and foreign policies,” said Rida Lyammouri of the Policy Center for the New South, a Morocco-based think tank, adding that a promise to move away from former colonial power France could define the foreign policy of the country’s new government.

Across neighboring countries in the Sahel, including Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, that recently experienced military coups, sentiment has turned against France. The ruling juntas have ended military cooperation with France, while turning instead to Russia for support.

The vote was largely peaceful with a high turnout, observers said. Early counts showed voters turned out overwhelmingly in favor of the opposition. Sonko promised a resounding victory on his YouTube channel. By the evening in Dakar, Faye had been declared the winner and celebrations erupted in Dakar.

In neighborhoods around the capital, supporters danced, played music and set off fireworks until late at night.

“Our democracy will emerge stronger from these results,” said Ndeye Sow, 27. “We’re delighted, there was no violence here, serenity is the order of the day.”

More than 7 million people were registered to vote in a country of roughly 17 million. To win, candidates had to secure more than 50% of the vote. It was Senegal’s fourth democratic transfer of power since gaining independence from France more than six decades ago.

Sunday's election was also the first without a sitting president on the ballot after the introduction of term limits that barred Sall from seeking a third term. The civil society observer group known as COSCE said voter turnout was over 61%.

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Associated Press writers Babacar Dione and Jack Thompson in Dakar contributed.

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