Twenty-four hours after the legislative elections, the Civil Forum takes stock. In a document received at Seneweb, the Senegalese section of Transparency International presented its observations on the conduct of the election. The Civil Forum also issued recommendations to the State for the post-election phase.
“Final declaration of the Electoral Headquarters of the Civil Forum
As part of the early legislative elections of November 17, 2024, the Civil Forum, Senegalese Section of Transparency International, with the financial support of Open Society Foundations, implemented the Electoral Accountability Program to contribute to a peaceful and honest electoral process.
The Electoral Accountability Program enabled the deployment of an electoral observation mission based on 3 essential pillars:
· Violence monitoring and long-term observation with 46 long-term observers/violence monitors deployed throughout the national territory
· Short-term electoral observation with the deployment on election day of 280 short-term observers
· The installation of an electoral Top Team, Election Headquarters linked to the 2 previous pillars
Likewise, a site for the early legislative elections of November 17, 2024 has been put online: legislativees2024.forum-civil.sn. Which site allows all those who are willing to have access to the results of monitoring violence from long-term observation, to the various reports produced throughout the election and to general information relating to the process to do it.
The electoral observation mission was coordinated by Birahim SECK, assisted by members of the Civil Forum and electoral experts. It was installed at the headquarters of the Civil Forum located at 40, Avenue El hadji Malick Sy.
OBSERVATIONS :
Based on the observations reported by observers who are members of the Civil Forum observation mission, it was noted:
When the polling stations open:
o 78% of polling stations covered by observers from the Civil Forum observation mission started on time.
o The proportion of 22% of Polling Stations (BV) having started late is due to:
– Missing electoral materials
– The non-presence at the start time of at least one member of the polling station
– A delay in setting up and organizing voting operations
o Almost all polling stations covered have an effective presence of polling station members.
o 14% of polling stations observed by observers from the Forum Civil electoral observation mission are chaired by 1 woman. In 41% of BVs, the assessor is female and in 47% of BVs, the secretary is a woman.
o In almost all of the polling stations observed, the electoral material essential for opening was present
o 98% of BVs are accessible
o In 99% of the BVs observed, the ballot box was checked and found to be empty before voting started
Regarding the process:
o Compliance with procedures noted by observers
o A qualitative presence of electoral material in almost all of the BVs observed
o 99% of voting centers are secure
o 99% of BVs guarantee the secrecy of the vote thanks to the correct layout of the voting booth.
o Likewise, it is noted in an almost total proportion that the voter identification procedures are respected as well as the verification of the finger before the start of the vote, the introduction of the finger in the indelible ink after the vote , his signature on the voter’s register as well as respect for silence.
At the close, the following information was reported by the observers:
o The presence of candidate representatives varies in the BVs from 0 to 12
o the procedures, to an almost total extent, were respected: sealed counting envelopes, signing of the minutes by the members of the polling stations, counting without incident, in the polling station. This testifies to the quality of the vote.
o In 22% of the BVs observed the number of tellers is greater than 4
o In 45% of the BVs observed, the presence of 4 scrutineers was observed
o In 35% of the BVs observed, fewer than 4 scrutineers were present at the close of the poll
o In 2% of BVs, minor incidents were reported
RECOMMENDATIONS:
The electoral observation mission of Forum Civil, the Senegalese section of Transparency International, recommends:
To the State:
o To ensure the smooth continuation of the process and the next stages of the post-electoral phase as stipulated in the legal framework;
To political actors:
o To use the legal remedies provided for this purpose in the event of a dispute;
o Not to use violence as a means of resolving conflicts;
o To ban all hate speech at their grassroots level;
o To continue building the capacities of their activists and better involvement of women in decision-making bodies.
To the media
o To continue the coverage of information while respecting ethics and professional conduct;
o To refrain from transmitting any hate speech and any false information;
To the citizens
o To refrain from any practice likely to call into question public order;
CONCLUSION :
The Civil Forum observation mission:
o Salutes the maturity of the Senegalese people for holding early elections in calm and serenity
o Salutes the spirit of fair play of political competitors congratulating the winning party even before the provisional proclamation of the results
o However, deplores acts of violence which have somewhat tarnished the image of Senegal as a democratic showcase in a context of real security challenges
o Congratulates the electoral administration which succeeded in the challenge of the organization despite the anticipated nature of the elections and reduced deadlines
The Civil Forum expresses its gratitude:
o to the Electoral Administration for the timely provision of accreditation titles, but also for its full collaboration,
o to Open Society Foundations which supported him in this Electoral Accountability Program;
o To our experts Mr. Mamadou SECK and Mr. Massamba NDIAYE
o to all monitors and observers deployed in the field for their commitment and skills,
o to members of the coordination team for the implementation and management of the electoral HQ.”
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