In Senegal, parliamentary candidates are facing increasing costs linked to their investiture, their election and their legislature. Senegal has had a long history of multi-party elections. Except for the period from 1963 to 1976 when the country experienced a single-party system, elections have always been hotly contested since independence, and even during the colonial period beforehand. 

This exploratory report aims to reflect on what MPs have said about their own election costs, the manner in which they dealt with their voters’ solicitations, and their proposals for making their parliamentary work more efficient. Looking to the future, the last part of this study will deal with the effect of the cost of politics on democracy.