The Most Famous

POLITICIANS from Senegal

This page contains a list of the greatest Senegalese Politicians. The pantheon dataset contains 19,576 Politicians, 12 of which were born in Senegal. This makes Senegal the birth place of the 135th most number of Politicians behind Mozambique, and Yemen.

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Senegalese Politicians of all time. This list of famous Senegalese Politicians is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Senegalese Politicians.

1. Ségolène Royal (b. 1953)

With an HPI of 63.77, Ségolène Royal is the most famous Senegalese Politician. Her biography has been translated into 69 different languages on wikipedia.

Ségolène Royal (French: [seɡɔlɛn ʁwajal] ; born Marie-Ségolène Royal; 22 September 1953) is a French politician who was the Socialist Party candidate for the presidency of France in the 2007 election. Royal was president of the Poitou-Charentes Regional Council from 2004 to 2014. She won the 2006 Socialist Party primary, becoming the first woman in France to be nominated as a presidential candidate by a major party. In the subsequent 2007 presidential election, she earned further distinction as the first woman to qualify for the second round of a presidential election, but ultimately lost to Nicolas Sarkozy. In 2008, Royal narrowly lost to Martine Aubry in the Socialist Party's election for First Secretary at the Party's twenty-second national congress. She lost the Socialist Party presidential primary in 2011, and failed in an attempt to win a seat in the National Assembly in the June 2012 parliamentary elections. She has four children with François Hollande, the former president, and was appointed by him to the vice-chair directorship of the Banque Publique d'Investissement (BPI) in 2013. She served as Minister for Ecology from 2014 to 2017, in the Valls, then Cazeneuve cabinets.

2. Abdoulaye Wade (b. 1926)

With an HPI of 61.88, Abdoulaye Wade is the 2nd most famous Senegalese Politician. His biography has been translated into 54 different languages.

Abdoulaye Wade (French pronunciation: [abdulaj wad]; born 29 May 1926) is a Senegalese politician who served as the third president of Senegal from 2000 to 2012. He is also the Secretary-General of the Senegalese Democratic Party (PDS), having led the party since it was founded in 1974. Assuming office at 74, Wade was the oldest person to occupy the post. A long-time opposition leader, he ran for president four times, beginning in 1978, before he was finally elected in the year 2000. He won re-election in 2007 with a majority in the first round, but was defeated in the second round in 2012 in a controversial bid for a third term. Wade also holds French citizenship.

3. Macky Sall (b. 1961)

With an HPI of 59.66, Macky Sall is the 3rd most famous Senegalese Politician. His biography has been translated into 58 different languages.

Macky Sall (French pronunciation: [maki sal], Wolof: Maki Sàll, Pulaar: 𞤃𞤢𞤳𞤭 𞤅𞤢𞤤‎, romanized: Maki Sal; born 11 December 1961) is a Senegalese politician who served as the fourth president of Senegal from 2012 to 2024. He previously served as the eighth prime minister from 2004 to 2007, under President Abdoulaye Wade and president of the National Assembly from 2007 to 2008. Sall served as the Mayor of Fatick from 2002 to 2008 and held that post again from 2009 to 2012. He was a long-time member of the Senegalese Democratic Party (PDS). After coming into conflict with Wade, he was removed from his post as President of the National Assembly in November 2008; he consequently founded his own party named the Alliance for the Republic (APR) and joined the opposition. Placing second in the first round of the 2012 presidential election, he won the backing of other opposition candidates and prevailed over Wade in the second round of voting, held on 25 March 2012. He is the first president born after Senegalese independence from France. Under Sall's leadership, significant infrastructure projects, including a new airport and town near Dakar, highways, express trains, a national stadium, and a road link to Mali, were completed. Throughout his tenure, there was a steady growth in the country's economy, with the annual GDP increasing from $17 billion to $27 billion. Internationally, he earned praise for his diplomatic efforts, advocating for African debt cancellation, bolstering anti-terrorism measures, and condemning military coups. He contributed to resolving conflicts in the country's Casamance region and played a crucial role in ousting dictator Yahya Jammeh in neighboring Gambia in 2017. At home, Sall stirred controversy for undemocratic maneuvers, including repressing the political opposition in Senegal and attempting a self-coup, which sparked the 2023–2024 Senegalese protests.

4. Abdou Diouf (b. 1935)

With an HPI of 59.54, Abdou Diouf is the 4th most famous Senegalese Politician. His biography has been translated into 44 different languages.

Abdou Diouf (US: AHB-doo dee-OOF; Serer: Abdu Juuf; born 7 September 1935) is a Senegalese politician who was the second president of Senegal from 1981 to 2000. Diouf is notable both for coming to power by peaceful succession and leaving willingly after losing the 2000 presidential election to long opposition-leader Abdoulaye Wade. He was also the second Secretary-General of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie from January 2003 to December 2014.

5. Amadou-Mahtar M'Bow (1921 - 2024)

With an HPI of 51.49, Amadou-Mahtar M'Bow is the 5th most famous Senegalese Politician. His biography has been translated into 21 different languages.

Amadou-Mahtar M'Bow GCIH (20 March 1921 – 24 September 2024) was a Senegalese civil servant and Director-General of UNESCO. M'bow served in France and North Africa during World War II after volunteering for the French Army, also serving with the Free French, and finally in the French Air Force. After the end of the war, he studied geography at the Sorbonne University in Paris. He served at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris from 1953 to 1987.

6. Mame Madior Boye (b. 1940)

With an HPI of 48.94, Mame Madior Boye is the 6th most famous Senegalese Politician. Her biography has been translated into 25 different languages.

Mame Madior Boye (Wolof: Maam Maajoor Bóoy; born 7 December 1940) is a Senegalese politician who served as Prime Minister of Senegal from 2001 to 2002. She was the first woman to hold that position.

7. Mamadou Dia (1910 - 2009)

With an HPI of 47.84, Mamadou Dia is the 7th most famous Senegalese Politician. His biography has been translated into 17 different languages.

Mamadou Dia (18 July 1910 – 25 January 2009) was a Senegalese politician who served as the first Prime Minister of Senegal from 1957 until 1962, when he was forced to resign and was subsequently imprisoned amidst allegations that he was planning to stage a military coup to overthrow President Léopold Sédar Senghor.

8. Ba Mamadou Mbaré (1946 - 2013)

With an HPI of 47.83, Ba Mamadou Mbaré is the 8th most famous Senegalese Politician. His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.

Ba Mamadou dit Mbaré (1946 – 10 January 2013) was a Mauritanian politician who served as President of the Senate of Mauritania from 2006 until his death. As President of the Senate, he succeeded Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz as Head of State on 15 April 2009, when Abdel Aziz resigned to take part in the June 2009 presidential election. Abdel Aziz was then elected president and in turn succeeded Mbaré on 5 August 2009.

9. Habib Thiam (1933 - 2017)

With an HPI of 46.68, Habib Thiam is the 9th most famous Senegalese Politician. His biography has been translated into 16 different languages.

Habib Thiam (21 January 1933 – 26 June 2017) was a Senegalese politician. He served as Prime Minister of Senegal on two occasions, from 1 January 1981 to 3 April 1983, and again from 8 April 1991 until 3 July 1998. He also served as President of the National Assembly from 1983 to 1984.

10. Fatma Samoura (b. 1962)

With an HPI of 44.16, Fatma Samoura is the 10th most famous Senegalese Politician. Her biography has been translated into 18 different languages.

Fatma Samba Diouf Samoura (born 9 September 1962) is a Senegalese former diplomat and senior executive. She was appointed as the first female secretary general of FIFA by president Gianni Infantino and assumed her post on 20 June 2016. Previously she worked in various positions at the United Nations, mostly of a humanitarian nature. In June 2023, she tendered her resignation as secretary general, which took effect on 31 December 2023.

People

Pantheon has 15 people classified as Senegalese politicians born between 1910 and 1976. Of these 15, 9 (60.00%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Senegalese politicians include Ségolène Royal, Abdoulaye Wade, and Macky Sall. The most famous deceased Senegalese politicians include Amadou-Mahtar M'Bow, Mamadou Dia, and Ba Mamadou Mbaré. As of April 2024, 1 new Senegalese politicians have been added to Pantheon including Ba Mamadou Mbaré.