Senegal is set to hold its delayed Presidential elections on Sunday amid a tense political atmosphere caused by the failure of President Macky Sall to postpone the vote and the release of two key opposition figures from prison.

According to the Associated Press, the delayed elections have sparked violent protests testing one of West Africa’s most stable democracies.

Opposition leader Ousmane Sonko was released from prison last week sparking wild jubilations in the streets of Dakar and adding to the excitement of the much-anticipated elections.

Alioune Tine, the founder of Afrikajom, a Senegalese think tank, said that Sunday’s election has a set grim record in Senegal’s political history with various rights groups accusing President Macky Sall of repressing the media, Civil society, and the opposition.

• “It was the longest and most violent presidential election process, with the most deaths, injuries, and political detainees,” said Tine.

Human Rights Watch said over 1000 opposition members and activists were arrested across the country in the last three years. President Macky Sall has faced accusations of wanting to hold on to power which he has denied many times.

Presidential Contestants 

There are 19 candidates in the race, the highest in Senegal’s history.

The ruling party has picked Amadou Ba, 62, a former prime minister and finance minister as its candidate.

Amadou Ba faces a crowded opposition of 18 contestants with the most prominent being 43-year-old former tax inspector Bassirou Diomaye Faye, who gained enormous popularity after being backed by firebrand opposition leader Ousmane Sonko.

Both Sonko and Faye were released from jail on March 14 due to an amnesty proposed by Sall after months in detention, and have since pushed the momentum of the election to the opposition ranks.