FOLLOWING the conclusion of collation of votes, Mr Diomaye Faye has officially been declared winner of the presidential election in Senegal, winning 54.28% of votes in the first round, the 44-YEAR-OLD Senegalese politician is elected the youngest leader on the African continent.
This newspaper had earlier reported how Faye, who was in prison 10 days before the election, was leading in the race.
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The vote followed months of political turmoil in one of Africa’s most stable democracies, after outgoing President Macky Sall tried to postpone the election until December.
Several of the other 15 candidates had already conceded.
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President Sall has also congratulated Mr Faye and said that it was a win for the people of Senegal.
Mr Faye is a senior member of the Pastef party, led by Ousmane Sonko, the popular figure who many thought would succeed Mr Sall.
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But Mr Sonko was disqualified from the election because of a defamation conviction, which he said was politically motivated. Mr Sonko backed Mr Faye’s bid for the presidency.
The first set of results announced on television overnight showing that Mr Faye had won a majority of the votes counted up to that point, triggered street celebrations in the capital, Dakar.
