Approximately 7.3 million Senegalese voters (out of 18 million inhabitants) are expected to cast their votes on Sunday, 24th March 2024, to elect the country’s fifth president. Gambiaj.com provides an overview of the Senegalese rules and procedures that registered voters must be familiar with on Sunday election.

After a political crisis lasting several weeks following the postponement of the presidential election originally scheduled for 15th February, Senegalese voters will finally elect a new head of state on Sunday, 24th March 2024. This will be the twelfth presidential election since the country’s independence in 1960.

Direct Universal Suffrage

In Senegal, the President is elected through direct universal suffrage and a two-round majority voting system. Since the 2016 constitutional referendum, the President’s term is five years, renewable once. To win in the first round, a candidate must secure an absolute majority (more than 50% of the votes). If no candidate achieves this, a second round is held within two weeks of the announcement of the results to determine the winner among the top two candidates.

Possession of a Valid Voter Card

According to Article L.26 of the Electoral Code, every Senegalese citizen aged 18 or older, enjoying civil and political rights, and registered on the electoral roll, is eligible to vote in the presidential election. Naturalized Senegalese citizens who have not retained any other nationality, and foreign nationals who have acquired Senegalese nationality through marriage, are also allowed to vote unless opposed by the government through decree.

On the day of the election, citizens must have their voter card coupled with the ECOWAS biometric identity card with them when heading to their polling station. Each voter is supposed to have obtained these cards well before the elections from the registration commissions if they have never voted before or if their old card has expired. It is important to check that the card is still valid and that the expiration date has not passed.

Prohibited Activities

It is prohibited on election day to distribute or have distributed to citizens any ballot papers or other electoral propaganda materials. The Electoral Code in Article L.62 provides for imprisonment for offenders.

Organization and Operation of the Polling Station

The Territorial Administration (Prefects and Sub-prefects) is responsible for the logistical organization of the polling station: setting up the voting booth, ink, ballot box, ballot papers, and any other materials. However, on the day of the election, the president has control of the polling station. The president alone manages the polling station, in collaboration with the other members, particularly those representing the National Autonomous Electoral Commission (CENA). In case of an incident, it is the president who contacts the security forces to restore order at the polling station.

The polling station is composed of a president, a secretary, and an elevator who are appointed by the Prefect or the Sub-prefect. However, it is the CENA that designates the polling station controller, and each party or coalition of candidates may optionally choose its representative.

All members of the polling stations who are duly registered on an electoral roll are authorized to vote in the stations where they sit upon presentation of their voter card.

For the vote to officially start, at least two members appointed by the administration, namely the president and the secretary or the assessor, must be present. If both members are absent, there can be no vote.

However, since the law allows for substitution in these cases, if the authority delays in sending someone, ECOWAS can de facto appoint its polling station supervisor to replace the absentee.

Voting Process

Upon entering the polling station, the voter finds a first table set up next to and around which there are, in principle, the CENA representative and the assessor. The voter presents their voter card, and the assessor identifies them. This is the verification process. If the voter’s name is correctly identified in the register, they are allowed to exercise their civic right. They then proceed to the voting table and take the ballot papers.

For these elections, there are 19 ballot papers, but the law, particularly Article L. 78 of the Electoral Code, requires the voter to take a minimum of five ballot papers. After making their choice, the voter goes to the voting booth to cast their vote. They must then put the unsealed envelope in the ballot box. After this exercise, the polling station president asks the voter to dip their finger in indelible ink before signing. The process is then completed for the voter.

Exemptions

Voters with a temporary or permanent disability that prevents them from accessing their polling station are allowed to vote at the nearest possible location where they are regularly registered to vote. They are given priority.

It should also be noted that military personnel and paramilitaries operating within the national territory and those assigned to secure the election, who are duly registered on an electoral roll, can vote under the same conditions and according to the same modalities as journalists on reporting missions. The former vote with priority if they are in uniform.

This favor is generally granted to the elderly.

Extension of the Poll

In principle, polling stations close at 6:00 PM if there are no more voters waiting. However, as long as there are voters in line, orders are prepared by the Prefect or the Sub-prefect for the polling station president to extend the voting period. The law stipulates that voting, for example, on Sunday, 24th March, should be possible until midnight.

But before extending the work, the president fills out the order, signs it, and posts it outside the polling station to notify the voters.

Vote Counting

At the close of voting, the president goes to the courtyard of the polling station to randomly select four scrutineers from among the voters. These scrutineers must be able to read and write in the official language and assist the polling station members with vote counting. They are generally responsible for removing the ballot papers from the envelopes, reading them aloud, and handing them to the president. The counting is done simultaneously.

After the counting, the announcement of the election results is carried out in different stages according to a procedure defined by the Electoral Code, particularly in its Article LO. 86. After the results are read aloud, the minutes are signed by the various members of the polling station, including the political party and coalition representatives, each of whom receives certified copies of the results, under the supervision of national and international observers.

The results are then posted outside the polling station by the president of the polling station before all the results from the polling center are communicated to the Departmental Vote Tallying Commission (CDRV), which, after the publication of unofficial results, transports them to the National Vote Tallying Commission (CNRV). It should be noted that the transport of the results from the center to the CDRV and then to the CNRV in sealed envelopes is always done under police escort.

Proclamation of Provisional Results

After collecting all the unofficial results from the CDRVs, the national recount commission, led by the Chief Justice of the Dakar Court of Appeal, publishes the provisional results of the election. However, the prerogatives reserved for the Court of Appeal in electoral matters, particularly during national presidential and legislative elections, are exercised by the Dakar Court of Appeal, in accordance with Article L.25 of the Electoral Code. (Regarding local elections, each Court of Appeal is