Counties of Kenya
Encyclopedia
The counties of Kenya are geographical units envisioned by the 2010 Constitution of Kenya
as the units along which devolved government will be created. The powers are provided in Articles 191 and 192 of the Constitution and in the Fourth Schedule. Pending legislation that will provide for such matters as removal of a County governor, the Counties of Kenya are due to become fully operational after the 2012 general elections. The counties will also act single member constituencies for the election of Members of Parliament to the Senate of Kenya
and Special Women Members of Parliament to the National Assembly of Kenya
As of the 2012 general elections, there will be 47 counties whose size and boundaries are based on the 47 legally recognized Districts of Kenya
.
), in the Kenya general election. The Counties' names are set out in the First Schedule of the Constitution of Kenya
Constitution of Kenya
The 1963 Constitution of Kenya was drawn up at independence. This constitution, heavily indebted to English law, had already been amended more than 30 times by 2010, but was widely agreed to require a major overhaul...
as the units along which devolved government will be created. The powers are provided in Articles 191 and 192 of the Constitution and in the Fourth Schedule. Pending legislation that will provide for such matters as removal of a County governor, the Counties of Kenya are due to become fully operational after the 2012 general elections. The counties will also act single member constituencies for the election of Members of Parliament to the Senate of Kenya
Senate of Kenya
The Senate of Kenya is a yet-to-be-established upper house of the currently-unicameral Parliament of Kenya. Following the passing of the constitutional referendum on August 4, 2010, it will be officially established as a body of the legislative branch on August 18, 2010, accompanied with a slew of...
and Special Women Members of Parliament to the National Assembly of Kenya
National Assembly of Kenya
The unicameral National Assembly of Kenya is the country's legislative body.The current National Assembly has a total of 224 members. 210 members are directly elected in single member constituencies using the simple majority system...
As of the 2012 general elections, there will be 47 counties whose size and boundaries are based on the 47 legally recognized Districts of Kenya
Districts of Kenya
The provinces of Kenya are subdivided into number of districts .- List of districts of Kenya :Following a High Court ruling in September 2009, there are 46 legal districts in Kenya :Coast Province:...
.
Tentative establishment
County governments are set to be set up in 47 Counties (Based on the 1992 Districts of KenyaDistricts of Kenya
The provinces of Kenya are subdivided into number of districts .- List of districts of Kenya :Following a High Court ruling in September 2009, there are 46 legal districts in Kenya :Coast Province:...
), in the Kenya general election. The Counties' names are set out in the First Schedule of the Constitution of Kenya
Constitution of Kenya
The 1963 Constitution of Kenya was drawn up at independence. This constitution, heavily indebted to English law, had already been amended more than 30 times by 2010, but was widely agreed to require a major overhaul...
Executive committee
Each county will be run be an executive committee, consisting of- A governor: elected directly by the people
- A deputy: elected as running mateRunning mateA running mate is a person running together with another person on a joint ticket during an election. The term is most often used in reference to the person in the subordinate position but can also properly be used when referring to both candidates, such as "Michael Dukakis and Lloyd Bentsen were...
of the successful candidate for governorship - A number of committee members not exceeding a third (or ten where a county assembly has more than 30 members) of the members of the respective county assembly.