Propelled to power from humble roots despite never holding national elected office, Senegal’s president-elect Bassirou Diomaye Faye defied the odds by promising radical change and being guided by a charismatic mentor.

Commonly known as Diomaye, which means “the honourable one” in the local Serer language, he won the March 24 presidential election with 54.3 percent of the vote just 10 days after leaving prison.

His anti-establishment message, the backing of opposition figurehead Ousmane Sonko and his modest personality helped him to a crushing first-round victory over the governing coalition’s candidate.

When 44-year-old Faye is sworn in on Tuesday, he will become Senegal’s fifth and youngest president since independence from France in 1960.

In a victory speech in French and Wolof, Faye said his priorities were “national reconciliation”, easing a painful cost-of-living crisis and fighting corruption.