Faye vs Sonko: who really runs Senegal?
Updated 19 May 2026
Inside the Faye–Sonko power balance: the 2024 substitute-candidate strategy, the 2025–2026 rift over party and debt, and where constitutional and political power sit.
The question of who really runs Senegal stems from an unusual origin: the two men at the top reached power as a pair, and have since drifted apart.
After two years of tense cohabitation, President Faye dismissed Ousmane Sonko and dissolved the government on 22 May 2026.
The 2024 substitute-candidate strategy
Barred from the 2024 ballot, Sonko ran Bassirou Diomaye Faye as a substitute candidate under the Wolof slogan “Diomaye moy Sonko” — “Diomaye is Sonko”. Faye won the first round with 54.28% in March 2024, and Sonko was appointed Prime Minister on 3 April 2024.[2]
The 2025–2026 rift
Over 2025 and into 2026 the partnership strained over coalition leadership and over IMF and debt strategy. In March 2026, Sonko threatened to take PASTEF back into opposition and created the APTE alliance.[2] In early May 2026, President Faye publicly warned that PASTEF “risks collapsing”, criticised what he called “excessive personalisation”, and stressed that he holds “the right to appoint and dismiss” the prime minister.[1] In mid-May 2026, an electoral-law reform cleared Sonko’s path to a possible 2029 presidential run.[3]
The 22 May 2026 dénouement
On Friday 22 May 2026, by decree n°2026-1128, President Faye ended Sonko’s functions as Prime Minister and dissolved the entire government. Detail: Sonko dismissed from the premiership.
Where power sits now
Constitutionally, the president holds executive power — Faye has just exercised it. Politically, Sonko still controls PASTEF, which holds 130 of 165 parliamentary seats. The balance has shifted: the next inflection point is the 6 June 2026 PASTEF congress, where Sonko is expected to consolidate his grip on the party ahead of 2029.
See also Who is Ousmane Sonko? Biography and the full Ousmane Sonko timeline.
Frequently asked questions
- Are Faye and Sonko in conflict?
- Yes — and the cohabitation has now ended. On 22 May 2026 President Bassirou Diomaye Faye dismissed Ousmane Sonko as Prime Minister and dissolved the government, by decree n°2026-1128.
- What does 'Diomaye moy Sonko' mean?
- It is a Wolof slogan meaning 'Diomaye is Sonko', used in the 2024 campaign to signal that a vote for Bassirou Diomaye Faye was effectively a vote for Sonko.
- Who has the constitutional power in Senegal?
- The president holds executive power and appoints and dismisses the prime minister — Faye exercised that power on 22 May 2026. Politically, Sonko still controls PASTEF, which holds 130 of 165 parliamentary seats.