Robert Sagna (born April 17, 1939Decision of the Constitutional Council on presidential candidacies
January 26, 2007 .Biography page at official website
.) is a

Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 � ...

ese politician who served in the government of Senegal from 1978 to 2000 and was Mayor of

Ziguinchor Ziguinchor (; wo, Siggcoor ; ar, زيغينكور) is the capital of the Ziguinchor Region, and the chief town of the Casamance area of Senegal, lying at the mouth of the Casamance River. It has a population of over 230,000 (2007 estimate). It ...

from 1984 to 2009. He was elected to the

National Assembly of Senegal The National Assembly (french: Assemblée nationale) is the unicameral legislature of Senegal. The Assembly was previously part of a bicameral legislature from 1999 to 2001 and from 2007 to 2012, with the indirectly elected Senate being the uppe ...

in 2007.

Biography

Sagna was born in Ziguinchor. Unusually for Senegal, where a large majority of the population is Muslim, Sagna is a Christian. During the presidencies of

Léopold Sédar Senghor Léopold Sédar Senghor (; ; 9 October 1906 – 20 December 2001) was a Senegalese poet, politician and cultural theorist who was the first president of Senegal (1960–80). Ideologically an African socialist, he was the major theoretician o ...

and

Abdou Diouf Abdou Diouf ( ; Serer: ; born 7 September 1935)Biography at Socialist Party website

, he served in the government as Secretary of State for Human Promotion from 1978 to 1980, Secretary of State for Maritime Fishing from 1980 to 1983, Minister of Equipment from 1983 to 1988, Minister of Tourism from 1987 to 1988, Minister of Information for the Sénégambia Confederation from 1988 to 1989, Minister of Communication from 1988 to 1990, Minister of Equipment, Transport and the Sea from 1991 to 1993, and Minister of State for Agriculture from 1993 to 2000. He also became Mayor of Ziguinchor in December 1984."Robert Sagna running for presidency in Senegal"
African Press Agency, February 6, 2007. He was a PS candidate in Ziguinchor in the April 2001 parliamentary election, but failed to win a seat. Sagna, part of a movement within the
Socialist Party Socialist Party is the name of many different political parties around the world. All of these parties claim to uphold some form of socialism, though they may have very different interpretations of what "socialism" means. Statistically, most of th ...
called "Democracy and Solidarity", opposed the 2007 presidential candidacy of the party's First Secretary,
Ousmane Tanor Dieng Ousmane Tanor Dieng (January 2, 1947 – July 15, 2019) was the First Secretary of the Socialist Party of Senegal. He was vice-president of the Socialist International from 1996 until his death. Personal life Born in 1947 in Nguéniène, Seneg ...
. Sagna stood as the candidate of the coalition
Takku Defaraat Sénégal Takku Defaraat Sénégal is a political alliance in Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum ...
in the February 2007 presidential election. He took fifth place with 2.58% of the vote,"Le texte intégral de la décision du Conseil constitutionnel"
Agence de Presse Sénégalaise, March 11, 2007 . and lost to incumbent President
Abdoulaye Wade Abdoulaye Wade (born 29 May 1926)
Encyclopedia of the Nations. Retrieved February 28, ...
, who won a majority in the first round, in his own home base of Ziguinchor. After the election, Sagna said that Wade had been freely elected and that he would not challenge the results. He was one of three candidates of Takku Defaraat Sénégal to be elected to the National Assembly in the June 2007 parliamentary election, through national list proportional representation. Wade's
Sopi Coalition The Sopi Coalition was the governing political alliance in Senegal during the presidency of Abdoulaye Wade. The alliance is composed of the Senegalese Democratic Party (PDS) and smaller parties. Wade is the Secretary-General of the PDS. The al ...
won the March 2009 local election in Ziguinchor. Sagna was accordingly succeeded as Mayor by Abdoulaye Baldé on April 18, 2009. On this occasion, Baldé said that he would propose to the municipal council that Sagna be designated as the Honorary Mayor of Ziguinchor; Sagna described this as a magnanimous gesture and thanked Baldé. As leader of the Rally for Socialism and Democracy/Takku Defaraat Senegal, Sagna supported
Macky Sall Macky Sall (, wo, Maki Sàll, fuc, 𞤃𞤢𞤳𞤭 𞤅𞤢𞤤‎, italic=no, Maki Sal; born 11 December 1961) is a Senegalese politician who has been President of Senegal since April 2012. He was re-elected President in the first round voti ...
, who was elected as President in 2012. Under Sall's presidency he played a key role in working to secure peace in Casamance, as well as bolstering Sall's support in the region, although he did not receive an official post. He expressed his party's continuing support for President Sall in July 2016.Mouhamadou Sagne
"Robert Sagna à Mboro : Le Rsd/Tds réaffirme son soutien au président de la République"
''Le Soleil'', 27 July 2016 .

References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sagna, Robert 1939 births Living people People from Ziguinchor Members of the National Assembly (Senegal) Mayors of places in Senegal Socialist Party of Senegal politicians Senegalese Christians Agriculture ministers of Senegal Communication ministers of Senegal Infrastructure ministers of Senegal Transport ministers of Senegal Tourism ministers of Senegal