Holac Posted September 1, 2017 NAIROBI, Kenya — In a historic ruling and a first in Africa, Kenya’s Supreme Court nullified on Friday the re-election of a sitting president, ordering a new vote to be held within 60 days after finding that the balloting last month had been tainted by irregularities. The election on Aug. 8 was conducted peacefully and was largely praised by international observers. But David Maraga, the court’s chief justice, declared the result “invalid, null and void” after siding with the opposition, which had argued that the vote had been electronically manipulated to assure a victory for President Uhuru Kenyatta. Mr. Kenyatta, 55, was re-elected with 54 percent of the vote, easily surpassing the 50 percent threshold needed to avoid a runoff. His main challenger, Raila Odinga, 72, who had petitioned the Supreme Court to nullify the election, received about 44 percent, a difference of about 1.4 million votes. A parallel tally by domestic observers endorsed the official result. The decision came as a surprise, even to Mr. Odinga and his supporters, who had complained about election irregularities. A top election official in charge of voting technology was killed about a week before the election, and although the casting of ballots went smoothly, the electronic transmission of voting tallies was flawed, leading the opposition to assert that as many as seven million votes had been stolen. The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission, which was in charge of the vote, “failed, neglected, or refused to conduct the presidential election in a manner consistent with the dictates of the Constitution,” the court said. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/01/world/africa/kenya-election-kenyatta-odinga.html Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Holac Posted September 1, 2017 This is a historic move that will be talked about for many years. It is a victory for African democracy. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Che -Guevara Posted September 1, 2017 I hope everything goes well, and no machetes come out. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
galbeedi Posted September 1, 2017 This is huge in Kenya . These judges have opened a can of worms. If they were smart enough , they should have moved and repeat what the observers and others had said. The second ballot will be disaster for Kenya. Odinga himself could not believe it . He was crying like someone who got the biggest gift of his life. The second time he will be elected president or else. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
maakhiri1 Posted September 2, 2017 ELECTION commission be replaced? I heard there was undeniable irregularities, more similar of 1969 SOMALI Election, were a village had more votes than major towns. Kenya can afford these, last election v cost over a billion. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites