An uncharacteristically short list of Senegalese presidential candidates

Reporting from Dakar, Senegal, FRANCE 24’s Nadia Massih explains that there are only five presidential hopefuls in the 2019 race since the incumbent, President Macky Sall’s two biggest rivals — — popular former Dakar mayor Khalifa Sall and Karim Wade, the son of the previous president — were disqualified after corruption convictions in trials questioned by rights groups. Sall faces competition from four lesser-known rivals who campaigned hard against his plans for a second phase of his project, which critics see as a waste of taxpayers’ money and a potential debt burden. His rivals are former prime minister Idrissa Seck, Issa Sall of the Unity and Assembly Party (PUR), former justice and foreign minister Madicke Niang and tax inspector-turned MP Ousman Sonko. The five-horse race leaves voters with a limited choice compared to 2012 when 14 candidates vied for the top post, and 2007 when 15 battled it out for the presidency.