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Kenya: Kenyatta won election with low turnout by landslide

October 30, 2017

The electoral commission has said fewer than half of eligible voters took part in the re-run presidential poll. Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga had boycotted the October 26 presidential election.

https://p.dw.com/p/2mkyH
President Uhuru Kenyatta and official
Image: Reuters/T. Mukoya

Incumbent Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta won Thursday's re-run presidential election with 98.2 percent of the vote, the electoral commission said on Monday.

The commission's head, Wafula Chebukati, said turnout for the disputed poll was nearly 39 percent.

Read more: Kenya repeats presidential election with opposition boycott

Election re-run in Kenya

The head of the Kenyan opposition, Raila Odinga, had called on his supporters to boycott the vote due to a lack of electoral reforms. Odinga, who was nonetheless listed on the ballot, received 0.96 percent share of the final tally.

"I'm satisfied that we were able to meet these conditions that have enabled the commission to deliver ... a free, fair and credible election," Chebukati said.

Chebukati had warned ahead of the election that his commission could not guarantee its credibility.

Wafula Chebukati, head of the Kenyan electoral commission
Wafula Chebukati, head of the Kenyan electoral commissionImage: picture-alliance/AP Photo/S. Abdul Azim

Read more: Kenyans divided as they mark Mashujaa 'Heroes' Day

After Chebukati announced the results, Kenyatta called for peace, adding that he expected legal challenges to the final outcome.

"My victory today is just part of a process that is likely to once again be subjected to a constitutional test through our courts ... I will submit to this constitutional path regardless of the outcome," he said.

A disputed vote

The vote, which was marred by street violence, took place following a decision by the country's Supreme Court to order a re-run of the August 8 presidential election. The court said the electoral commission had committed "irregularities and illegalities" in the run up to the first vote.

But on the day of the re-run, Odinga called on the country to "not participate in any way in the sham election ... Convince your friends, neighbors and everyone else not to participate."

Odinga also told his supporters to refrain from protesting, but demonstrations nevertheless erupted in several opposition strongholds, including Nairobi, Mombasa and Kisumu. At least three people were killed in clashes between demonstrators and police.

On Monday, US ambassador to Kenya Robert F. Godec warned ofescalating tensions in the country, saying Kenyans needed "to resolve the deep divisions that the electoral process has exacerbated."

Read more: In Kenya, politics split on ethnic divide

Protests and violence mar Kenyan election

amp/jm (AP, Reuters, dpa)