Presidential election kicks off in Senegal

DAKAR, Senegal | Xinhua | The first round of the Senegalese presidential election started today at 8 a.m. local time (0800 GMT).

According to statistics from the General Directorate of Elections, approximately 7.37 million voters, over 7 million domestically and the remainder abroad are expected to cast their ballots to elect the fifth president of Senegal.

Senegalese voters will vote in 16,440 polling stations from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. The General Directorate of Elections said 2,457 observers have been accredited for the election.

Nineteen candidates are competing to succeed the outgoing president, Macky Sall, who was elected in 2012 and re-elected in 2019.