TITLE III. OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC
Article 26
The President of the Republic is elected by direct universal suffrage and by the absolute majority of the suffrage expressed.
Article 27
The duration of the mandate of the President of the Republic is of five years.
No one may exercise more than two consecutive mandates.
Article 28
Any candidate to the Presidency of the Republic must be exclusively of Senegalese nationality, enjoying his civil and political rights, [and] be thiry-five (35) years of age at least and seventy-five (75) years at most [on] the day of the ballot. He must know how to write, to read and to fluently speak the official language.
Article 29
The candidatures are deposited with the greffe [office] of the Constitutional Council, thirty full days at least and sixty full days at most, before the first round of the ballot.
However, in case of death of a candidate, the deposit of new candidatures is possible at any time[,] and until the eve [veille] of the ballot.
In this case, the elections are postponed [reportées] to a new date by the Constitutional Council.
Any candidature, to be receivable, must be presented by a political party or a coalition of political parties legally constituted or be accompanied by the signatures of electors representing at least ten thousand registered residents [inscrits domiciles] in six regions on the basis of five hundred at least per region.
The independent candidates, as [are] the political parties, are held to conform to Article 4 of the Constitution. Each party or coalition of political parties may only present one sole candidate.
Article 30
Twenty-nine full days before the first round of the ballot, the Constitution Council orders and publishes the list of the candidates.
The electors are convoked by decree.
Article 31
The ballot for the election of the President of the Republic takes place forty-five full day at most and thirty full days at least before the date of expiration of the mandate of the President of the Republic in [his] functions.
If the Presidency is vacant, by resignation, definitive incapacity [empêchement] or death, the ballot shall be held within the sixty days at least and ninety days at most, after the declaration of the vacancy by the Constitutional Council.
Article 32
The Courts and Tribunals see to the regularity of the electoral campaign and to the equality of candidates in the utilization of the means of propaganda, within the conditions determined by an organic law.
Article 33
The ballot takes place [on] a Sunday. However, for the members of the military and paramilitary corps, the vote may take place on one or several days established by decree.
No one is elected at the first round if they have not obtained the absolute majority of the suffrage expressed.
If no candidate has obtained the majority required, it proceeds to a second round of the ballot [on] the third Sunday which follows the decision of the Constitutional Council.
The two candidates arriving ahead in the first round are admitted to present themselves in the second round.
In the case of challenge [contestation], the second round takes place [on] the third Sunday following the day of the pronouncement of the decision of the Constitutional Council.
At the second round, the relative majority suffices to be elected.
Article 34
In case of definitive incapacity or of withdrawal of one of the candidates between the order [arrêt] of publication of the list of candidates and the first ballot, the election is carried out [poursuivie] with the other candidates [still] contesting [lice]. The Constitutional Council modifies the list of candidates consequentially. The date of the ballot is maintained.
In case of death, of definitive incapacity, or of withdrawal of one of the two candidates between the ballot of the first round and the provisional proclamation of the results, or between this provisional proclamation and the definitive proclamation of the results of the first round by the Constitutional Council, the candidate following in order of votes [suffrages] is admitted to present himself in the second round.
In case of death, of definitive incapacity, or of withdrawal of one of the two candidates between the proclamation of the definitive results of the first round and the ballot of the second round, the candidate following on the list of results of the first round is admitted to the second round.
In the two preceding cases, the Constitutional Court declares the death, the definitive incapacity or the withdrawal and establishes a new date of the ballot.
In the case of death, of definitive incapacity, or of withdrawal of one of the two candidates arriving ahead according to the provisional results of the second round, and before the proclamation of the definitive results of the second round by the Constitutional Council, the sole candidate remaining is declared elected.
Article 35
The Courts and Tribunals see to the regularity of the ballot within the conditions determined by an organic law.
The regularity of the electoral operations may be contested by one of the candidates[,] before the Constitutional Council[,] within the seventy-two hours which follow the provisional proclamation of the results by a national commission of counting of the votes instituted by an organic law.
If no challenge [contestation] has been deposited within this time period with the greffe of the Constitutional Council, the Council immediately proclaims the definitive results of the ballot.
In the case of challenge, the Council decides on the claim within the five full days from the deposit of it. Its decision results in the definitive proclamation of the ballot or annulment of the election.
In the case of annulment, it proceeds to a new round of the ballot within the twenty-one full days which follow.
Article 36
The President-elect of the Republic enters into [his] functions after the definitive proclamation of his election and the expiration of the mandate of his predecessor.
The President of the Republic in office [exercice] remains in [his] functions until the installation of his successor.
In the case when the President of the Republic elected dies, is found definitively incapacitated or renounces the benefit of his election before entering into [his] functions, it proceeds to new elections within the conditions provided for by Article 31.
Article 37
The President of the Republic is installed in his functions after having taken the oath before the Constitutional Council in public sitting.
The oath is taken in the following terms:
“Before God and before the Senegalese Nation, I swear to faithfully fulfill the charge of the President of the Republic of Senegal, to scrupulously observe and have observed the provisions of the Constitution and of the laws, to consecrate all my abilities [forces] to defend the constitutional institutions, the integrity of the territory and the national independence, [and] to spare no effort for the realization of African unity.”
The President of the Republic newly elected makes a written declaration of his patrimony[,] deposited with the Constitutional Council, which renders it public.
Article 38
The office [charge] of the President of the Republic is incompatible with the membership in any elective assembly, National Assembly or local assemblies, and with the exercise of any remunerated function, public or private.
However, he has the faculty of exercising functions in a political party or to be [a] member of academies in one of the domains of knowledge.
Article 39
In case of resignation, of definitive incapacity or of death, the President of the Republic is replaced [suppléé] by the President of the National Assembly.
In the case that he should himself be in one of the cases above, the replacement is assured by one of the vice presidents of the National Assembly in the order of precedence
Article 40
During the duration of the replacement, the provisions of Articles 49, 51, 86, 87 and 103 are not applicable.
Article 41
The resignation, the incapacity or the death of the President of the Republic is declared by the Constitutional Council[,] referred to [the matter] by the President of the Republic in case of resignation, [or] by the authority called on to replace him in case of incapacity or of death.
It is the same for the declaration of the resignation, of the incapacity or of the death of the President of the National Assembly or for the person called on to replace him.
Article 42
The President of the Republic is the guardian of the Constitution. He is the premier Protector of the Arts and Letters of Senegal.
He incarnates the national unity.
He is the guarantor of the regular functioning of the institutions, of the national independence and of the integrity of the territory.
He determines the policy of the Nation.
He presides over the Council of Ministers.
Article 43
The President of the Republic signs the ordinances and the decrees.
The acts of the President of the Republic, with the exception of those which he accomplishes by virtue of Articles 26 paragraphs 2 to 5, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49 paragraph 1, 52, 60-1, 74, 76 paragraph 2, 78, 79, 83, 87, 89 and 90 are countersigned by the Prime Minister.
Article 44
The President of the Republic appoints to the civil offices [emplois].
Article 45
The President of the Republic is responsible for the National Defense. He presides over the Superior Council of the National Defense and the National Council of Security.
He is the Supreme Head [Chef] of the Armies; he appoints to the military offices [emplois] and [has] the armed force at his disposal.
Article 46
The President of the Republic accredits the ambassadors and the extraordinary envoys before foreign powers.
The ambassadors and extraordinary envoys of the foreign powers are accredited to him.
Article 47
The President of the Republic has the right of pardon.
Article 48
The President of the Republic can address messages to the Nation.
Article 49
The President of the Republic appoints the Prime Minister and terminates his functions.
On the proposal of the Prime Minister, the President of the Republic appoints the Ministers, establishes their attributions and terminates their functions.
Article 50
The President of the Republic can delegate[,] by decree[,] certain powers to the Prime Minister or to the other members of the Government with the exception of powers specified in Articles 42, 46, 47, 49, 51, 52, 72, 73, 87, 89 and 90.
He can also authorize the Prime Minister to take decisions by decree.
Article 51
The President of the Republic can, after having received the opinion of the President of the National Assembly and of the Constitutional Council, submit any bill of constitutional law to referendum.
He can, on the proposal of the Prime Minister and having received the opinion of the authorities indicated above, submit any bill of law to referendum.
The Courts and Tribunals see to the regularity of the operations of referendum. The Constitutional Council proclaims the results of it.
Article 52
When the institutions of the Republic, the independence of the Nation, the integrity of the national territory or the execution of international commitments are menaced in a grave and immediate manner, and [when] the regular functioning of the public powers or of the institutions is interrupted, the President of the Republic [has] at his disposal exceptional powers.
He can, after having informed the Nation by a message, take any measure tending to reestablish the regular functioning of the public powers and of the institutions and to assure the safeguarding of the Nation.
He may not, by virtue of the exceptional powers, proceed to constitutional revision.
The National Assembly meets of plain right.
It is referred to [the matters] for [their] ratification, within the fifteen days of their promulgation, of the measures of legislative nature brought into force by the President. It can amend them or reject them on the occasion of a vote of a law of ratification. These measures become lapsed if the bill of the law of ratification is not deposited with the Bureau of the National Assembly within the stated time period.
The National Assembly may not be dissolved during the exercise of the exceptional powers. When these are exercised after the dissolution of the National Assembly, the date of the elections established by the decree of dissolution may not be delayed, except [in] case of force majeure declared by the Constitutional Council.
