Senegal proves the doomsayers wrong

Little more than a month ago Senegal was in the midst of a constitutional crisis. Macky Sall, the outgoing president, had tried to delay elections by ten months. His most popular rival was behind bars and disqualified from running. Security forces were beating and arresting protesters. Many feared that a country widely seen as a bulwark of stability in a region once again beset by coups and overstaying presidents might be the next domino to fall.