Senegal President Bassirou Diomaye Faye launches new party Kiiraay, reshaping opposition

President Bassirou Diomaye Faye officially launched the new party Kiiraay – Les Patriotes Républicains on 25 July in Dakar, formally ending his alliance with Ousmane Sonko and the historic Pastef coalition. The party brings together more than 400 movements and former Pastef members, fragmenting the voter base that supported Faye in the 2024 election and opening a strategic opening for traditional opposition parties such as APR, PDS and Taxawu Sénégal.

KIIRAAY member Aldiouma Sow later defended the government's handling of the territorial election calendar, accusing opposition figures of politicising a delay in publishing the election decree. Sow argued that no legal deadline forces the president to set a date, cited previous close‑spaced elections in 2021‑2022, and expressed confidence that KIIRAAY will win any forthcoming local elections.