Senegal voted in a tense general election Sunday, with ex-president Abdoulaye Wade accusing his successor of engineering problems with the ballot to thwart an opposition victory. The vote to elect a new parliament is seen as a test run for President Macky Sall ahead of a 2019 presidential election and follows a campaign marred by violence. The first results are due early on Monday in the west African nation, where more than 6.2 million people are registered to vote. There were hours-long delays to voting in several places, and some voters complained of being left off the electoral rolls. “I’m going home. I’ve checked at several polling stations and my name doesn’t figure anywhere. However I normally vote here,” complained Souleye Tine in Dakar’s working-class Medina neighbourhood.
Wade pointed the blame firmly at the president after a campaign that at times saw violent clashes in a country normally known for its peaceful democratic traditions.
“Macky Sall arranged it – he gave instructions so that in all the places where he thinks the opposition is going to win, there’s no voting,” Wade said.
“An election in which one of the candidates cannot find his ballot papers in the polling stations cannot be called an election,” Wade said in reference to delays due to the absence of ballot papers for several electoral lists.
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