Kenyan presidential election, 2007
Encyclopedia
A presidential election was held as part of the Kenyan general election
on December 27, 2007; parliamentary elections
were held on the same date. Incumbent President Mwai Kibaki
was declared the winner and sworn in on December 30, despite opposition leader Raila Odinga
's claims of victory. There is agreement in the international community that the elections were at least partially manipulated.
In July 2008, an exit poll commissioned by the US was released, revealing that Odinga won the election by a comfortable margin of 6%, 46% to 40%, well outside of the exit poll's 1.3% margin of error.
The election was strongly marked by tribalism
, with Kibaki a member of the traditionally dominant Kikuyu ethnic group getting much support amongst people of Central Kenya i.e. Kikuyu and neighbouring groups like Embu and Meru. Odinga, as a member of the Luo
ethnic group, succeeded in creating a wider base by building a coalition with regional leaders from the Luhya in Western Kenya
, Kalenjin from the Rift Valley
and Muslim leaders from the Coast Province
. The third place candidate, Kalonzo Musyoka
, had his base mainly amongst the Kamba
. Following the announcement of Kibaki's victory, civil unrest broke out which was often directed against members of Kibaki's ethnic group residing outside their traditional settlement areas.
Kenneth Matiba
of Saba Saba Asili joined the race after a 10-year political hiatus. Other candidates were Joseph Ngacha Karani (Kenya Patriotic Trust), Nixon Jeremiah Kukubo (Republican Party of Kenya), Pius Muiru (Kenya Peoples’ Party), David Waweru Ng’ethe (Chama Cha Umma) and Nazlin Omar (Workers Congress Party).
declared on January 26, 2007 his intentions of running for re-election, even though he had previously declared at the 2002 elections that he needed only one term as president. At the time ODM-Kenya coalition was expected to field the strongest challenger for Kibaki. The main parties affiliated to ODM-Kenya were LDP
and KANU
. At the time of the 2002 elections, LDP was part of the NARC
movement backing Kibaki, but were dismissed from the cabinet after the 2005 constitutional referendum
. KANU, on the other hand is a former ruling party, but the former president Daniel arap Moi
was among its faction opposing its involvement with the ODM-Kenya coalition. KANU and LDP had originally teamed up for the 2005 referendum, under the banner Orange Democratic Movement.
ODM-Kenya split in two in August 2007, with one faction (ODM-Kenya) led by Kalonzo Musyoka
, while others joined the original ODM. KANU
left the coalition. Former president Daniel arap Moi announced his support for the re-election of Kibaki, his former political enemy, in late August, and Uhuru Kenyatta
followed the suit and announced his support for Kibaki in mid-September. Kenyatta had earlier vied for presidential candidacy on the ODM ticket before he and his party KANU had ditched the coalition. KANU will field its own parliamentary candidates.
Several ODM members vied for presidency, including Kalonzo Musyoka, Raila Odinga
, Uhuru Kenyatta
, William Ruto
, Najib Balala
, Musalia Mudavadi
and Joseph Nyagah
. Following the August 2007 split, the ODM-K appointed Musyoka as its candidate on August 31 and the ODM elected Odinga as its candidate on September 1.
On September 16, 2007, Kibaki announced that he would stand as the candidate of a new alliance called the Party of National Unity
, which will include a number of parties, including KANU, DP, Narc-Kenya, Ford-Kenya, Ford People
, and Shirikisho among others. He began his presidential campaign on September 30 at Nyayo Stadium in Nairobi.
Odinga launched his campaign in Uhuru Park
on October 6, 2007. On the same day, three ODM supporters were shot (one of them fatally), allegedly by bodyguards of Stanley Livondo, who is running as the PNU candidate for Odinga's seat in parliament. Livondo was arrested, along with two of his bodyguards and released later.
In October, Odinga led Kibaki in opinion polls. Two cabinet ministers, first Health Minister Charity Ngilu
and then Regional Cooperation Minister John Koech
, backed Odinga in October; Kibaki dismissed Ngilu from the cabinet.
Pius Muiru, a bishop
and the leader of Kenya Peoples Party (KPP), officially launched his bid for the presidency on October 21, 2007 at Kamukunji grounds.
Parliament was dissolved on Tuesday October 23rd, paving way for the Electoral Commission of Kenya
(ECK) to announce the election date. The date was officially announced on October 26, 2007 by the ECK, stating the elections would be held on Thursday December 27, 2007.
Opinion polls in late October put Odinga at 50% support, Kibaki at 39%, and Musyoka at 8%. The poll released in early November put Odinga at 45%, Kibaki at 41% and Musyoka at 11%, while on November 23 a poll placed Odinga and Kibaki at about the same level, with 43.6% and 43.3% support respectively.
Presidential candidates presented their nomination papers on the November 14th and 15th to the ECK and 9 candidates were cleared to be on the ballot in December.
The June 2007 poll also featured a section on a head-to-head poll with Kibaki against each of the ODM candidates. Both Musyoka and Odinga scored 45%, indicating a dead-tie with Kibaki. The rest of the candidates scored as follows against Kibaki: Najib Balala: 43%, William Ruto: 39%, Uhuru Kenyatta: 38%.
An exit poll conducted from 310 polling stations in 139 constituencies (out of 210) showed Kibaki getting 50.3% of the votes compared to 40.6% for Raila Odinga. On the other hand, early results by Kenyan media gave Raila Odinga a narrow lead.
Odinga held a strong lead in vote counting on December 28, and the ODM declared victory for Odinga on December 29; however, as more results were announced on the same day, the gap between the two candidates narrowed. Early on December 30, Odinga accused the government of fraud, urged Kibaki to concede defeat, and called for a recount. The Electoral Commission declared Kibaki the winner later on December 30, placing him ahead of Odinga by about 232,000 votes. According to Odinga, at least 300,000 votes for Kibaki were falsely included in his total. The Chairman of the Electoral Commission, Samuel Kivuitu
, said that while irregularities did occur, they were a matter for the courts, not the Electoral Commission. Following the Commission's declaration of his victory, Kibaki was sworn in for his second term later on the same day, saying that he had been told by his people that he had won, calling for the "verdict of the people" to be respected and for "healing and reconciliation" to begin.
Kivuitu said that there were some problems in the vote counting, noting that in one constituency voter turnout was reported as 115%, this was later clarified by Kivuitu appearing in an interview by Nation Television due to a double entry of one polling station in Maragua Constituency
on the parliamentary tally and not the presidential tally. According to the European Union
's head observer in the election, Alexander Graf Lambsdorff
, the election was "flawed" and the Electoral Commission failed to establish "the credibility of the tallying process to the satisfaction of all parties and candidates." The United Kingdom
's Foreign Secretary, David Miliband
, said that his country had "real concerns" about the election. While the United States
initially congratulated Kibaki and called for the results to be respected, it also expressed concern, and on January 2, 2008 a spokesman for the U.S. State Department
declined to confirm U.S. recognition of Kibaki's victory. Kivuitu said on January 2 that he had been pressured by PNU and ODM-K (Kibaki's and Kalonzo Musyoka's parties) into announcing the results without delay, declaring Kibaki as elected winner; claiming that he did not personally know who really won.
Within minutes of the Commission's declaration of Kibaki's victory, tribe-based rioting and violence, primarily directed against Kikuyus, broke out across Kenya, and the government suspended live television coverage for some days. Odinga alleged that "a clique of people around Kibaki" sought to rig the election, but said that democracy "is unstoppable like the flow of the Nile". The ODM announced its intention to hold a ceremony on December 31 in which Odinga would be declared the "people's president", but police said that this could incite violence and that Odinga could be arrested if the ceremony occurred. Odinga then delayed this, but called for a million-strong rally on January 3, 2008 and for his supporters to wear black armbands as a show of mourning.
Odinga said that the ODM would not negotiate with Kibaki unless he resigned, because to do so would, according to Odinga, mean acknowledging Kibaki's legitimacy; he also said that, unless stopped, the "ruling clique" could rig the next election in five years as well, and that he was not afraid of being arrested, having been jailed many times in the past. For his part, Kibaki emphasized the importance of peace, stability, and tolerance in his 2008 New Year's message, speaking of the election as a concluded event and warning that law-breakers would be punished.
NB - In addition to receiving the largest number of votes in absolute terms, a successful presidential candidate must also win 25% or more of the vote in at least five of Kenya's eight provinces to avoid a runoff.
This cabinet consisted of:
, to conduct an exit poll during the election. IRI initially did not have confidence in the integrity of the poll data. It therefore believed the poll to be invalid and decided not to release the poll. However, after an audit of the poll data file, IRI reversed its earlier position and released the poll in July 2008.
The poll indicated that Odinga won the election by a margin of 6%, 46% to 40%, well outside of the exit poll's 1.3% margin of error.
Kenyan general election, 2007
Kenyan general election, 2007 was held on 27 December 2007 . It comprised Presidential, parliamentary and civic elections. The previous general election in Kenya was held in 2002.-See also:*Kenyan presidential election, 2007...
on December 27, 2007; parliamentary elections
Kenyan parliamentary election, 2007
Parliamentary elections in Kenya were held as part of the Kenyan general election on December 27, 2007; presidential elections were held on the same date....
were held on the same date. Incumbent President Mwai Kibaki
Mwai Kibaki
Mwai Kibaki is the current and third President of the republic of Kenya.Kibaki was previously Vice President of Kenya for ten years from 1978–1988 and also held cabinet ministerial positions, including a widely acclaimed stint as Minister for Finance , Minister for Home Affairs and Minister for...
was declared the winner and sworn in on December 30, despite opposition leader Raila Odinga
Raila Odinga
Raila Amollo Odinga , also popularly known to Kenyans as Agwambo, is a Kenyan politician, currently serving as the Prime Minister of Kenya in a coalition government. He has served as a Member of Parliament for Langata since 1992, was Minister of Energy from 2001 to 2002, and was Minister of Roads,...
's claims of victory. There is agreement in the international community that the elections were at least partially manipulated.
In July 2008, an exit poll commissioned by the US was released, revealing that Odinga won the election by a comfortable margin of 6%, 46% to 40%, well outside of the exit poll's 1.3% margin of error.
The election was strongly marked by tribalism
Tribalism
The social structure of a tribe can vary greatly from case to case, but, due to the small size of tribes, it is always a relatively simple role structure, with few significant social distinctions between individuals....
, with Kibaki a member of the traditionally dominant Kikuyu ethnic group getting much support amongst people of Central Kenya i.e. Kikuyu and neighbouring groups like Embu and Meru. Odinga, as a member of the Luo
Luo (Kenya and Tanzania)
The Luo are an ethnic group in Kenya, eastern Uganda, and northern Tanzania. They are part of a larger group of ethnolinguistically related Luo peoples who inhabit an area including southern Sudan, northern and eastern Uganda, western Kenya, and northern Tanzania.The Luo are the third largest...
ethnic group, succeeded in creating a wider base by building a coalition with regional leaders from the Luhya in Western Kenya
Western Province (Kenya)
The Western Province of Kenya, bordering Uganda, is one of Kenya's seven administrative provinces outside Nairobi. It is west of the Eastern Rift Valley and is inhabited mainly by the Luhya people. Quakerism is widely practised here. Kenya's second highest mountain, Mount Elgon is located in...
, Kalenjin from the Rift Valley
Rift Valley Province, Kenya
Rift Valley Province of Kenya, bordering Uganda, is one of Kenya's seven administrative provinces outside Nairobi.Rift Valley Province is the largest and one of the most economically important provinces in Kenya. It is dominated by the Great Rift Valley which passes through it and gives the...
and Muslim leaders from the Coast Province
Coast Province
Coast Province of Kenya, along the Indian Ocean, is one of Kenya's seven administrative provinces outside Nairobi. It comprises the Indian Ocean coastal strip with the capital city at Mombasa and is inhabited by the Mijikenda and Swahili, among others...
. The third place candidate, Kalonzo Musyoka
Kalonzo Musyoka
Stephen Kalonzo Musyoka is a Kenyan politician, currently serving as Vice President of Kenya. Musyoka served in the government under President Daniel arap Moi and was Minister for Foreign Affairs from 1993 until 1998; subsequently, under President Mwai Kibaki, he was Minister of Foreign Affairs...
, had his base mainly amongst the Kamba
Kamba
The Kamba are a Bantu ethnic group who live in the semi-arid Eastern Province of Kenya stretching east from Nairobi to Tsavo and north up to Embu, Kenya. This land is called Ukambani. Sources vary on whether they are the third, fourth or the fifth largest ethnic group in Kenya...
. Following the announcement of Kibaki's victory, civil unrest broke out which was often directed against members of Kibaki's ethnic group residing outside their traditional settlement areas.
Kenneth Matiba
Kenneth Matiba
Kenneth Matiba is a Kenyan politician. He was the second-place candidate in the 1992 presidential election.Matiba became a senior civil servant at a young age of 31...
of Saba Saba Asili joined the race after a 10-year political hiatus. Other candidates were Joseph Ngacha Karani (Kenya Patriotic Trust), Nixon Jeremiah Kukubo (Republican Party of Kenya), Pius Muiru (Kenya Peoples’ Party), David Waweru Ng’ethe (Chama Cha Umma) and Nazlin Omar (Workers Congress Party).
Timeline and preparations
Incumbent president Mwai KibakiMwai Kibaki
Mwai Kibaki is the current and third President of the republic of Kenya.Kibaki was previously Vice President of Kenya for ten years from 1978–1988 and also held cabinet ministerial positions, including a widely acclaimed stint as Minister for Finance , Minister for Home Affairs and Minister for...
declared on January 26, 2007 his intentions of running for re-election, even though he had previously declared at the 2002 elections that he needed only one term as president. At the time ODM-Kenya coalition was expected to field the strongest challenger for Kibaki. The main parties affiliated to ODM-Kenya were LDP
Liberal Democratic Party (Kenya)
The Liberal Democratic Party was a political party in Kenya.In the general election held on 27 December 2002, the party was a partner in the National Rainbow Coalition, which won 56.1 % of the popular vote and 125 out of 212 elected seats. The party itself took 59 of these seats...
and KANU
Kenya African National Union
The Kenya African National Union, better known as KANU is a political party which ruled Kenya for nearly 40 years after its independence from British colonial rule in 1963, until its electoral loss at the end of 2002...
. At the time of the 2002 elections, LDP was part of the NARC
National Rainbow Coalition
The National Rainbow Coalition was a coalition of Kenyan political parties in power from 2002 and 2005 when it fell apart in a controversy between its wings about a constitutional referendum.-Formation:...
movement backing Kibaki, but were dismissed from the cabinet after the 2005 constitutional referendum
Kenyan constitutional referendum, 2005
The 2005 Kenyan constitutional referendum was held on 21 November 2005. The proposed new constitution was voted down by a 58% majority of Kenya's voters...
. KANU, on the other hand is a former ruling party, but the former president Daniel arap Moi
Daniel arap Moi
Daniel Toroitich arap Moi was the President of Kenya from 1978 until 2002.Daniel arap Moi is popularly known to Kenyans as 'Nyayo', a Swahili word for 'footsteps'...
was among its faction opposing its involvement with the ODM-Kenya coalition. KANU and LDP had originally teamed up for the 2005 referendum, under the banner Orange Democratic Movement.
ODM-Kenya split in two in August 2007, with one faction (ODM-Kenya) led by Kalonzo Musyoka
Kalonzo Musyoka
Stephen Kalonzo Musyoka is a Kenyan politician, currently serving as Vice President of Kenya. Musyoka served in the government under President Daniel arap Moi and was Minister for Foreign Affairs from 1993 until 1998; subsequently, under President Mwai Kibaki, he was Minister of Foreign Affairs...
, while others joined the original ODM. KANU
Kenya African National Union
The Kenya African National Union, better known as KANU is a political party which ruled Kenya for nearly 40 years after its independence from British colonial rule in 1963, until its electoral loss at the end of 2002...
left the coalition. Former president Daniel arap Moi announced his support for the re-election of Kibaki, his former political enemy, in late August, and Uhuru Kenyatta
Uhuru Kenyatta
Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta is a Kenyan politician, currently serving as Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Finance and MP for Gatundu South Constituency. He is the Chairman of Kenya African National Union , the former ruling party, which is currently part of the Party of National Unity...
followed the suit and announced his support for Kibaki in mid-September. Kenyatta had earlier vied for presidential candidacy on the ODM ticket before he and his party KANU had ditched the coalition. KANU will field its own parliamentary candidates.
Several ODM members vied for presidency, including Kalonzo Musyoka, Raila Odinga
Raila Odinga
Raila Amollo Odinga , also popularly known to Kenyans as Agwambo, is a Kenyan politician, currently serving as the Prime Minister of Kenya in a coalition government. He has served as a Member of Parliament for Langata since 1992, was Minister of Energy from 2001 to 2002, and was Minister of Roads,...
, Uhuru Kenyatta
Uhuru Kenyatta
Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta is a Kenyan politician, currently serving as Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Finance and MP for Gatundu South Constituency. He is the Chairman of Kenya African National Union , the former ruling party, which is currently part of the Party of National Unity...
, William Ruto
William Ruto
William Kipchirchir Samoei arap Ruto is a Kenyan politician who was Minister for Higher Education until 19 October 2010 after being suspended for corruption. He is also one of the two deputy party leaders of the Orange Democratic Movement. He had previously served in the Ministry of Agriculture...
, Najib Balala
Najib Balala
Najib Balala is a Kenyan politician. He is the Tourism Minister and a M.P...
, Musalia Mudavadi
Musalia Mudavadi
Wycliffe Musalia Mudavadi is a Kenyan politician, currently serving as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Local Government.Mudavadi was born in Sabatia, Vihiga District...
and Joseph Nyagah
Joseph Nyagah
Joseph Nyagah is a Kenyan politician and is currently the Minister of Cooperative Development and Marketing in Kenya's grand coalition government....
. Following the August 2007 split, the ODM-K appointed Musyoka as its candidate on August 31 and the ODM elected Odinga as its candidate on September 1.
On September 16, 2007, Kibaki announced that he would stand as the candidate of a new alliance called the Party of National Unity
Party of National Unity (Kenya)
Party of National Unity was founded as a political coalition of parties in Kenya. On September 16, 2007, Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki announced the party formation and said that he would run as its presidential candidate in the December 2007 Kenyan elections...
, which will include a number of parties, including KANU, DP, Narc-Kenya, Ford-Kenya, Ford People
Forum for the Restoration of Democracy-People
The Forum for the Restoration of Democracy–People is a political party in Kenya.At the 2002 general election, the party won 14 out of 210 elected seats.At the 2002 presidential elections, the party supported Simeon Nyachae, who came third with 5.9%....
, and Shirikisho among others. He began his presidential campaign on September 30 at Nyayo Stadium in Nairobi.
Odinga launched his campaign in Uhuru Park
Uhuru Park
Uhuru Park is a recreational park adjacent to the central business district of Nairobi, Kenya. It contains an artificial lake and an assembly ground used for occasional political and religious gatherings...
on October 6, 2007. On the same day, three ODM supporters were shot (one of them fatally), allegedly by bodyguards of Stanley Livondo, who is running as the PNU candidate for Odinga's seat in parliament. Livondo was arrested, along with two of his bodyguards and released later.
In October, Odinga led Kibaki in opinion polls. Two cabinet ministers, first Health Minister Charity Ngilu
Charity Ngilu
Charity Kaluki Ngilu is a Kenyan politician. She was Minister of Health from 2003 until 2007 and was appointed as Minister of Water and Irrigation in April 2008....
and then Regional Cooperation Minister John Koech
John Koech
John Koech is a Kenyan politician. He was minister for the East African Community in Kenya and a member of parliament for the constituency of Chepalungu until December 2007 when he lost his parliamentary seat to Isaac Ruto.-References:...
, backed Odinga in October; Kibaki dismissed Ngilu from the cabinet.
Pius Muiru, a bishop
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
and the leader of Kenya Peoples Party (KPP), officially launched his bid for the presidency on October 21, 2007 at Kamukunji grounds.
Parliament was dissolved on Tuesday October 23rd, paving way for the Electoral Commission of Kenya
Electoral Commission of Kenya
Electoral Commission of Kenya refers to the now defunct commission that was disbanded by the 10th Parliament in 2008 and replaced with the Interim Independent Electoral Commission of Kenya. Samuel Kivuitu the last Chairman of the Commission and the commissioners at the time of disbanding, in...
(ECK) to announce the election date. The date was officially announced on October 26, 2007 by the ECK, stating the elections would be held on Thursday December 27, 2007.
Opinion polls in late October put Odinga at 50% support, Kibaki at 39%, and Musyoka at 8%. The poll released in early November put Odinga at 45%, Kibaki at 41% and Musyoka at 11%, while on November 23 a poll placed Odinga and Kibaki at about the same level, with 43.6% and 43.3% support respectively.
Presidential candidates presented their nomination papers on the November 14th and 15th to the ECK and 9 candidates were cleared to be on the ballot in December.
Campaign issues
Some of the issues of the election being discussed by the 3 candidates were:- EconomyEconomy of KenyaKenya's economy is market-based, with a few state-owned infrastructure enterprises, and maintains a liberalized external trade system. The country is generally perceived as Eastern and central Africa's hub for Financial, Communication and Transportation services...
- Infrastructure
- Corruption (see Wikileaks Kenya entry)
- MajimboMajimboMajimbo is a Swahili term that is commonly used in Kenya to refer to the idea of political devolution of power to the country's regions...
/Ugatuzi (federalism & devolution) - Free High school Education
- Universal Health care
- Position of Muslims within Kenya
- Constitution (Odinga promised a new constitution within six months of taking office)
Opinion polls
*For a documentation of more opinion polls in the runup to the Kenyan election see Polls before the Kenyan elections 2007Polls before the Kenyan elections 2007
Opinion polls played an important role in the runup to the Kenyan elections of December 2007. A number of institutes published results on the presidential candidates. Nation Media employed the Kenyan Steadman market information company to conduct regular polls, which thus received the widest...
| Poll date | Kibaki Mwai Kibaki Mwai Kibaki is the current and third President of the republic of Kenya.Kibaki was previously Vice President of Kenya for ten years from 1978–1988 and also held cabinet ministerial positions, including a widely acclaimed stint as Minister for Finance , Minister for Home Affairs and Minister for... |
Musyoka Kalonzo Musyoka Stephen Kalonzo Musyoka is a Kenyan politician, currently serving as Vice President of Kenya. Musyoka served in the government under President Daniel arap Moi and was Minister for Foreign Affairs from 1993 until 1998; subsequently, under President Mwai Kibaki, he was Minister of Foreign Affairs... |
Odinga Raila Odinga Raila Amollo Odinga , also popularly known to Kenyans as Agwambo, is a Kenyan politician, currently serving as the Prime Minister of Kenya in a coalition government. He has served as a Member of Parliament for Langata since 1992, was Minister of Energy from 2001 to 2002, and was Minister of Roads,... |
Mudavadi Musalia Mudavadi Wycliffe Musalia Mudavadi is a Kenyan politician, currently serving as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Local Government.Mudavadi was born in Sabatia, Vihiga District... |
Ruto William Ruto William Kipchirchir Samoei arap Ruto is a Kenyan politician who was Minister for Higher Education until 19 October 2010 after being suspended for corruption. He is also one of the two deputy party leaders of the Orange Democratic Movement. He had previously served in the Ministry of Agriculture... |
Kenyatta Uhuru Kenyatta Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta is a Kenyan politician, currently serving as Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Finance and MP for Gatundu South Constituency. He is the Chairman of Kenya African National Union , the former ruling party, which is currently part of the Party of National Unity... |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| October 2006 | 41% | 20% | 13% | 3% | 5% | |
| December 2006 | 42% | 20% | 14% | 3% | 5% | |
| March 2007 | 51% | 14% | 17% | 2% | 2% | 2% |
| April 2007 | 44.3% | 15.3% | 18.7% | 2.7% | 2.6% | 3.5% |
| June 2007 | 45% | 14% | 28% | 4% | 3% | 4% |
| July 2007 | 45% | 11% | 25% | 3% | 2% | 2% |
| August 2007 | 42% | 11% | 25% | 8% | 6% | 1% |
| August 2007 | 47% | 13% | 36% | 1% | 1% | |
| September 2007 | 38% | 8% | 47% | |||
| October 13th 2007 | 37% | 8% | 53% | |||
| October 23rd 2007 | 39% | 8% | 50% | |||
| November 9, 2007 | 41% | 11% | 45% | |||
| November 21, 2007 | 41.4% | 14.7% | 40.7% | |||
| November 17, 2007 | 42% | 11% | 45% | |||
| November 23, 2007 | 43.3% | 11.4% | 43.6% | |||
| December 7, 2007 | 42% | 10% | 46% | |||
| December 18, 2007 | 43% | 10% | 45% |
The June 2007 poll also featured a section on a head-to-head poll with Kibaki against each of the ODM candidates. Both Musyoka and Odinga scored 45%, indicating a dead-tie with Kibaki. The rest of the candidates scored as follows against Kibaki: Najib Balala: 43%, William Ruto: 39%, Uhuru Kenyatta: 38%.
Presidential election results
Odinga held a strong lead in vote counting on December 28, and the ODM declared victory for Odinga on December 29; however, as more results were announced on the same day, the gap between the two candidates narrowed. Early on December 30, Odinga accused the government of fraud, urged Kibaki to concede defeat, and called for a recount. The Electoral Commission declared Kibaki the winner later on December 30, placing him ahead of Odinga by about 232,000 votes. According to Odinga, at least 300,000 votes for Kibaki were falsely included in his total. The Chairman of the Electoral Commission, Samuel Kivuitu
Samuel Kivuitu
Samuel Kivuitu was head of the now defunct Electoral Commission of Kenya. He was reappointed to his post by the Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki ahead of the 2007 general election, having already been in charge during Kenya's general elections in 1997, 2002 as well as a constitutional referendum in 2005...
, said that while irregularities did occur, they were a matter for the courts, not the Electoral Commission. Following the Commission's declaration of his victory, Kibaki was sworn in for his second term later on the same day, saying that he had been told by his people that he had won, calling for the "verdict of the people" to be respected and for "healing and reconciliation" to begin.
Kivuitu said that there were some problems in the vote counting, noting that in one constituency voter turnout was reported as 115%, this was later clarified by Kivuitu appearing in an interview by Nation Television due to a double entry of one polling station in Maragua Constituency
Maragua Constituency
Maragua Constituency is an electoral constituency in Kenya. It is one of three constituencies in Maragua District, Central Province. The constituency was established for the 1997 elections.- Members of Parliament :- Wards :...
on the parliamentary tally and not the presidential tally. According to the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
's head observer in the election, Alexander Graf Lambsdorff
Alexander Graf Lambsdorff
Alexander Graf Lambsdorff is a German politician and Member of the European Parliament with the Free Democratic Party of Germany, part of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe and sits on the European Parliament’s Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection.Lambsdorff is a...
, the election was "flawed" and the Electoral Commission failed to establish "the credibility of the tallying process to the satisfaction of all parties and candidates." The United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
's Foreign Secretary, David Miliband
David Miliband
David Wright Miliband is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for South Shields since 2001, and was the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs from 2007 to 2010. He is the elder son of the late Marxist theorist Ralph Miliband...
, said that his country had "real concerns" about the election. While the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
initially congratulated Kibaki and called for the results to be respected, it also expressed concern, and on January 2, 2008 a spokesman for the U.S. State Department
United States Department of State
The United States Department of State , is the United States federal executive department responsible for international relations of the United States, equivalent to the foreign ministries of other countries...
declined to confirm U.S. recognition of Kibaki's victory. Kivuitu said on January 2 that he had been pressured by PNU and ODM-K (Kibaki's and Kalonzo Musyoka's parties) into announcing the results without delay, declaring Kibaki as elected winner; claiming that he did not personally know who really won.
Within minutes of the Commission's declaration of Kibaki's victory, tribe-based rioting and violence, primarily directed against Kikuyus, broke out across Kenya, and the government suspended live television coverage for some days. Odinga alleged that "a clique of people around Kibaki" sought to rig the election, but said that democracy "is unstoppable like the flow of the Nile". The ODM announced its intention to hold a ceremony on December 31 in which Odinga would be declared the "people's president", but police said that this could incite violence and that Odinga could be arrested if the ceremony occurred. Odinga then delayed this, but called for a million-strong rally on January 3, 2008 and for his supporters to wear black armbands as a show of mourning.
Odinga said that the ODM would not negotiate with Kibaki unless he resigned, because to do so would, according to Odinga, mean acknowledging Kibaki's legitimacy; he also said that, unless stopped, the "ruling clique" could rig the next election in five years as well, and that he was not afraid of being arrested, having been jailed many times in the past. For his part, Kibaki emphasized the importance of peace, stability, and tolerance in his 2008 New Year's message, speaking of the election as a concluded event and warning that law-breakers would be punished.
Results
These are the official results as of January 29, 2008 as appears on the Electoral Commission of Kenya website. Alongside are figures put out by the Office of the Government Spokesman, and also appeared at media websites soon after the results were announced.| Party | Candidate | Votes (ECK) 29 Jan | Votes (Kibaki Gov't) | ||
| PNU Party of National Unity (Kenya) Party of National Unity was founded as a political coalition of parties in Kenya. On September 16, 2007, Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki announced the party formation and said that he would run as its presidential candidate in the December 2007 Kenyan elections... |
Mwai Kibaki Mwai Kibaki Mwai Kibaki is the current and third President of the republic of Kenya.Kibaki was previously Vice President of Kenya for ten years from 1978–1988 and also held cabinet ministerial positions, including a widely acclaimed stint as Minister for Finance , Minister for Home Affairs and Minister for... |
4,578,034 | 4,584,721 | 47% | |
| ODM Orange Democratic Movement Orange Democratic Movement refers to a political party in Kenya, which is the successor of a former grassroots people's movement which was formed in the 2005 Kenyan constitutional referendum. The erstwhile single party which separated in August 2007 into two... |
Raila Odinga Raila Odinga Raila Amollo Odinga , also popularly known to Kenyans as Agwambo, is a Kenyan politician, currently serving as the Prime Minister of Kenya in a coalition government. He has served as a Member of Parliament for Langata since 1992, was Minister of Energy from 2001 to 2002, and was Minister of Roads,... |
4,352,860 | 4,352,993 | 44% | |
| ODM-K Orange Democratic Movement–Kenya Orange Democratic Movement-Kenya refers to a political party in Kenya, which originated as a result of the 2005 Kenyan constitutional referendum... |
Kalonzo Musyoka Kalonzo Musyoka Stephen Kalonzo Musyoka is a Kenyan politician, currently serving as Vice President of Kenya. Musyoka served in the government under President Daniel arap Moi and was Minister for Foreign Affairs from 1993 until 1998; subsequently, under President Mwai Kibaki, he was Minister of Foreign Affairs... |
879,899 | 879,903 | 9% | |
| KPTP | Joseph Karani | 21,168 | 21,171 | 0.2% | |
| KPP | Pius Muiru | 9,665 | 9,667 | 0.09% | |
| WCPK | Nazlin Omar | 8,624 | 8,624 | 0.087% | |
| SSA | Kenneth Matiba Kenneth Matiba Kenneth Matiba is a Kenyan politician. He was the second-place candidate in the 1992 presidential election.Matiba became a senior civil servant at a young age of 31... |
8,049 | 8,046 | 0.081% | |
| CCUP | David Ng'ethe | 5,976 | 5,976 | 0.06% | |
| RPK | Nixon Kukubo | 5,926 | 5,927 | 0.06% | |
Provincial results
| Province | Kibaki | % | Odinga | % | Kalonzo | % | Others | % | Votes Cast | Registered Voters | Turnout |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NAIROBI | 313,478 | 47.7% | 288,922 | 44.0% | 52,974 | 8.1% | 1,845 | 0.3% | 657,219 | 1,275,021 | 51.5% |
| COAST | 197,354 | 33.1% | 353,773 | 59.4% | 38,881 | 6.5% | 5,909 | 1.0% | 595,917 | 1,045,629 | 57.0% |
| NORTH EASTERN | 97,263 | 50.3% | 91,440 | 47.2% | 4,498 | 2.3% | 333 | 0.2% | 193,534 | 315,664 | 61.3% |
| EASTERN | 835,481 | 50.4% | 83,575 | 5.0% | 726,782 | 43.8% | 13,229 | 0.8% | 1,659,067 | 2,516,998 | 65.9% |
| CENTRAL | 1,741,086 | 97.0% | 34,046 | 1.9% | 11,702 | 0.7% | 7,215 | 0.4% | 1,794,049 | 2,186,315 | 82.1% |
| RIFT VALLEY | 818,445 | 33.5% | 1,580,880 | 64.6% | 33,863 | 1.4% | 12,300 | 0.5% | 2,445,488 | 3,358,285 | 72.8% |
| WESTERN | 312,300 | 32.2% | 639,246 | 65.9% | 6,729 | 0.7% | 11,417 | 1.2% | 969,692 | 1,564,854 | 62.0% |
| NYANZA | 262,627 | 16.9% | 1,280,978 | 82.4% | 4,476 | 0.3% | 7,160 | 0.5% | 1,555,235 | 2,041,686 | 76.2% |
| Totals | 4,578,034 | 46.4% | 4,352,860 | 44.1% | 879,899 | 8.9% | 59,408 | 0.6% | 9,870,201 | 14,304,452 | 69.0% |
NB - In addition to receiving the largest number of votes in absolute terms, a successful presidential candidate must also win 25% or more of the vote in at least five of Kenya's eight provinces to avoid a runoff.
Election observers statement
The following account is drawn from the statements of four of the five domestic election observers allowed into the verification process the Electoral Commission of Kenya (ECK) afforded political party representatives the night before the announcement of the results for the Presidency. Kenyans for Peace with Truth and Justice (KPTJ)- [ftp://ftp.wizzy.com/pub/wizzy/kenya/KPTJPress18Jan.ped.pdf Count Down to Deception: 30 Hours that Destroyed Kenya]
- [ftp://ftp.wizzy.com/pub/wizzy/kenya/KPTJelectionobs.pdf Kenyan Elections Observers’ Log: December 29-30, 2007]
- [ftp://ftp.wizzy.com/pub/wizzy/kenya/KPTJdata2.pdf Kenyan Elections Observers' Log: the cost of anomalies, malpractices and illegalities noted to voters and their votes (spreadsheet)]
- [ftp://ftp.wizzy.com/pub/wizzy/kenya/KPTJdata1.pdf Kenya 2007 General Election: Comparison of Total Parliamentary vs. Total Presidential Votes Cast ECK Figures*(spreadsheet)]
Aftermath
Riots erupted in Kenya after Kibaki was declared re-elected as President. Certain opposition supporters, angered by alleged electoral manipulation by President Kibaki, allegedly incited civil unrest. The unrest involved ethnic violence between members of different tribes, particularly between the Kikuyu and the Luo. Eventually, a power-sharing agreement, according to which Kibaki would remain President and Odinga would gain the new post of Prime Minister, was reached in late February 2008, and a coalition government, with an equal number of ministers for the PNU and the ODM, was named in April.January 2008 Government
After being sworn in as President, Kibaki named a partial Cabinet on January 8, 2008, composed of 17 members of parliament from his party PNU and ODM-Kenya which entered into a coalition agreement, along with KANU. A number of further cabinet slots were left temporarily open, presumably to give space for negotiations with the opposition ODM which, however, immediately challenged the constitutionality of this government.This cabinet consisted of:
- (1) Vice President and Minister for Home Affairs: Stephen Kalonzo Musyoka
- (2) Minister of State for Provincial Administration and Internal Security, Office of the President: Professor George SaitotiGeorge SaitotiProf. George Kinuthia Saitoti is a Kenyan politician and mathematician who was Vice President of Kenya from 1989 to 1997 and again from 1999 to 2002. He has been Minister for Internal Security since 2008 and Acting Minister for Foreign Affairs since 2010.-Biography and education:George Saitoti is...
- (3) Minister of State for Defence, Office of the President: Yussuf Mohamed Haji
- (4) Minister of State for Special Programmes, Office of the President: Dr. Naomi Namsi Shaban
- (5) Minister for Public Service, Office of the President : Asman Abongotum Kamama
- (6) Minister for Finance : Amos Muhinga KimunyaAmos KimunyaAmos Muhinga Kimunya is a Kenyan politician and a Member of Parliament for Kipipiri Constituency, currently serving as Minister of Trade. He was Minister of Finance from 2006 to July 2008, when he resigned due to the Grand Regency Hotel scandal...
- (7) Minister for Education : Professor Sam Ongeri
- (8) Minister for Foreign Affairs : Moses WetangulaMoses WetangulaMoses Masika Wetangula is a Kenyan politician and Member of Parliament representing Sirisia Constituency. He has been the Minister for Foreign Affairs since January 2008.-Early life:...
- (9) Minister for Local Government : Uhuru KenyattaUhuru KenyattaUhuru Muigai Kenyatta is a Kenyan politician, currently serving as Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Finance and MP for Gatundu South Constituency. He is the Chairman of Kenya African National Union , the former ruling party, which is currently part of the Party of National Unity...
- (10) Minister for Information and Communications : Samuel Lesuron Poghisio
- (11) Minister for Water and Irrigation : John Munyes
- (12) Minister for Energy : Kiraitu Murungi
- (13) Minister for Roads and Public Works : John Njoroge MichukiJohn MichukiJohn Njoroge Michuki was born 1932 at Muguru village, Iyego Location, Kangema Division in Murang’a County. Educated in Kenya and abroad, Michuki has emerged as one of the prominent and long-serving civil servants and politicians as well as a businessman in Kenya...
- (14) Minister for Science and Technology : Noah M. Wekesa
- (15) Minister for Justice and Constitutional Affairs : Martha KaruaMartha KaruaMartha Wangari Karua is a Kenyan politician. She is a Member of Parliament for Gichugu Constituency and an Advocate of the High Court of Kenya...
- (16) Minister for East African Community : Dr. Wilfred Machage
- (17) Minister for Transport: Chirau Ali MwakwereChirau Ali MwakwereChirau Ali Mwakwere is a Kenyan politician and diplomat. He served as the Foreign Minister of Kenya from June 2004 to December 2005, and then became transport minister in December 2005, when serious problems within the National Rainbow Coalition caused a cabinet reshuffle...
US Exit Poll
While few reports mentioned it, the US, acting through USAID commissioned the International Republican InstituteInternational Republican Institute
Founded in 1983, the International Republican Institute is an organization, funded by the United States government, that conducts international political programs, sometimes labeled 'democratization programs'....
, to conduct an exit poll during the election. IRI initially did not have confidence in the integrity of the poll data. It therefore believed the poll to be invalid and decided not to release the poll. However, after an audit of the poll data file, IRI reversed its earlier position and released the poll in July 2008.
The poll indicated that Odinga won the election by a margin of 6%, 46% to 40%, well outside of the exit poll's 1.3% margin of error.
External links
- Election results - Government Website
- BBC summary (08-01-2008): "Kenya's dubious election"
- Electoral Commission of Kenya -slow in updating-
- Electionkenya.com -preelection page, shows no results-
- Daily Nation - Kenya Elections 2007 - results are no more visible
- The Standard - Election Platform - results not updated
- How Kenya polls were messed up - by Tabu Butagira & Jeff Otieno, Monitor, Uganda January 3, 2008
- Count Down to Deception: 30 Hours that Destroyed Kenya - KPTJ Pambazuka News - check pdfs at bottom