Senegal's National Assembly on December 2 elected former Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko as its Speaker, a move widely seen as granting him a powerful platform to challenge incumbent President Bassirou Diomaye Faye.
On November 29, President Faye dismissed Sonko and dissolved the cabinet, ending months of speculation about growing rifts between the two leaders over handling the country's debt crisis.
Lawmakers rebounded by reinstating Sonko's parliamentary mandate on December 3 and voting him into the Speaker's post with 132 votes in favor. According to session chair Ismael Diallo, Sonko was the sole candidate for the position, with no votes against and only one abstention. He received a long ovation after his election.
Sonko succeeds El Malick Ndiaye, a loyal supporter who resigned on December 1, paving the way for the former prime minister's return.
Aissata Tall Sall, leader of the main opposition, denounced the move as an “institutional coup” prepared under “pressure that the majority wants to impose.” She argued that Sonko, to become a lawmaker again, first had to resign as Prime Minister to sit temporarily in the Assembly before returning to government.
President Faye appointed Sonko as Prime Minister in April 2024 after winning the presidential election the previous month. Faye is largely indebted to Sonko, who served as his mentor and would almost certainly have taken the top job himself had he not been barred from running due to a defamation conviction.
Sonko remains the undisputed leader of the Pastef party, which controls 130 of the 165 seats in Senegal's sole legislative body.
President Faye now faces the daunting task of governing and implementing reforms amid severe economic difficulties. On December 2, he appointed senior economist Ahmadou Al Aminou Mohamed Lo as Prime Minister, citing the new appointee's expertise to lift Senegal out of its heavy debt burden.
