Kenya to hold fresh presidential vote on October 17

NAIROBI: Kenya will hold a fresh presidential vote on October 17, the election commission said Monday, after the country’s Supreme Court overturned the result of last month’s poll won by President Uhuru Kenyatta.

“A fresh presidential election will be held on the 17th of October 2017,” said a statement signed by Wafula Chebukati, chairperson of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC).

“This is in conformity with the Supreme Court decision annulling the presidential election held on 8th August 2017.”

Chebukati said only Kenyatta and opposition leader Raila Odinga, who brought the court challenge, would be on the ballot paper, along with their running mates.

On Friday, chief justice David Maraga cancelled the results of the August poll saying the election commission had failed to hold a legitimate election and that the results were therefore “invalid, null and void”.

He added that the IEBC had committed “irregularities and illegalities” in the transmission of results from polling stations to the national tally centre.

However, a full explanation of the court’s reasoning has yet to be published.

“It is imperative that a detailed judgement… is released in order to allow the Commission to identify areas that require improvement,” Chebukati said.

Kenyatta has committed to campaigning hard to win the new election while Odinga has called for IEBC personnel to be replaced in light of the court ruling.