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Senegal’s ousted prime minister Sonko elected parliament speaker

Senegal’s parliament has elected recently dismissed Prime Minister Sonko as its Speaker.

Senegal’s parliament elected Ousmane Sonko as its new speaker just days after President Bassirou Diomaye Faye dismissed him as prime minister amid a widening rift over reforms and debt policy. Lawmakers rebelled against Faye’s decision by reinstating Sonko as an MP and backing him with 132 votes in the 165‑seat assembly, a move the opposition called illegal. As speaker, Sonko now holds significant power to obstruct the president’s legislative agenda, deepening uncertainty around Senegal’s upcoming negotiations with the IMF. Sonko framed the moment as a test of Senegalese democracy, urging political actors to navigate the crisis without violence or institutional breakdown.

Read more:

https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/senegal-parliament-elects-ousted-prime-minister-sonko-speaker-2026-05-26/