At a time when, in the absence of official figures, there is confusion over the provisional results of the presidential election in Senegal held on 24 February, the EU called on all actors on Wednesday 27 February to remain calm until the end of the electoral process, which will continue be under its observation.
“The presidential election on 24 February 2019 took place in a peaceful atmosphere and, according to observers, complied with electoral procedures”, said the spokesperson for the European External Action Service. They recalled that the EU Election Observation Mission, led by MEP Elena Valenciano (S&D, Spain), “emphasised the strong turnout of voters for the elections and described the process as calm and transparent against a backdrop characterised by a certain lack of trust and dialogue between the opposition and the majority”.
The EU therefore says it expects that “all actors to be guided by the same spirit of calm and responsibility demonstrated by the voters until the final results are announced and that any potential querying of the results must only be carried out through the legal remedies provided for this purpose”. The deadline for the publication of the final results by the Constitutional Council is Friday at midnight, which will determine whether a second round will take place, even though Macky Sall, the outgoing President, has declared himself the winner. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)