President Macky Sall (center) received the president-elect (right) and Senegalese opposition leader Ousmane Sonko (left) (French)

Outgoing Senegalese President Macky Sall received at the presidential palace the winning candidate in the presidential elections, Basserou Diomaye Faye, who was “warmly” congratulated by the African Union, welcoming everyone’s acceptance of the results.

The meeting between Sall and Fay came after weeks of crisis surrounding the Senegalese presidential elections, and heralds a quick and peaceful handover of power in the West African country, which has prided itself on its stability and democracy in a region that constantly witnesses coups.

Fay, 44, was released from prison 10 days before the elections, along with his inspiration, Ousmane Sonko, who was banned from running due to a criminal conviction against him that he says was politically motivated.

Sall received the two men in what his office described as “a calm meeting in which the main issues of the state, as well as the inauguration ceremony, were discussed at length.”

Macky Sall (left) shakes hands with opposition leader Othman Sonko, with President-elect Faye at his side (Reuters)

African congratulations

The African Union "warmly" congratulated opposition figure Basserou Diomaye Faye on his victory in the presidential elections in Senegal, welcoming in a statement "all acceptance of the results."

The statement said that the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat, “warmly congratulates President Basseiro Diomaye Faye on the occasion of the official announcement of his election in the first session,” wishing him “full success in his noble and great mission.”

The African Union also welcomed "the acceptance of the results by the entire Senegalese political class (...), which proves a deep rootedness in the democratic traditions of this country, which represents a beacon of African democracy."

According to preliminary results, Fay won the first round of elections with 54.3%, far outperforming former Prime Minister Amadou Ba, the candidate chosen by Sall, who came in second place with 35.8% of the votes.

The Senegalese Constitutional Court is expected to officially declare Faye's victory before the weekend, making the handover of power possible before April 2, the official end of Sall's term.

Sall sparked a political crisis last February when he suspended the presidential elections, and this led to protests and clashes that left 4 dead, before the Constitutional Court ordered setting a date of March 24 to hold the elections.

Fay, who has never held elected office before, is set to become the fifth president of the West African country, with a population of about 18 million, and has promised to restore national "sovereignty" and implement a "left-wing" African unity programme.

Source: Al Jazeera + French