By Biran Gaye
Former President Macky Sall’s APR and Abdoulaye Wade’s PDS have announced the establishment of a “grand coalition” with a view to scoop majority seats in the November legislative elections.
“As a prelude to the early legislative elections of November 17, 2024, two high-level delegations from the Senegalese Democratic Party (PDS) and the Alliance for the Republic (APR) met this Sunday, September 22, 2024 at the National Office, Oumar Lamine Badji,” a press release shared by Senenews says.
“At the end of the meeting and after a perfect convergence of views, the two political parties confirmed their desire to set up a large political coalition, open to the respective allies, and to any political party that would like to join it with a view to winning the upcoming legislative elections by a large margin.”
The parties said they will join the Alliance for Electoral Transparency (ATEL).
They call on all political organizations and the country’s vital forces to come and actively participate in the coalition, which set out to ‘redress and address social emergencies as well as the concerns of the Senegalese.’
The press release adds that a joint technical committee is set up with a view to working on the “modalities for implementing and expanding this major initiative”.
With the parliamentary elections in sight, it remains to be seen how much seats the coalition could accumulate in the 15th legislature.
In the last presidential election, PDS endorsed the ‘Diomaye President’ coalition which defeated the defunct Benno Bokk Yakaar coalition, of which the Alliance for the Republic (APR) was a leading member. PDS’s endorsement came after its candidate Karim Wade was rejected at the nominations level by the constitutional council.
