See the chaotic scenes as Kenya elects new president in a presidential election
MILWAUKEE — Voters in Kenya’s hotly contested presidential election on Tuesday evening got a first taste of the political tumult engulfing the African country as a new president was sworn in amid chaotic scenes.
While the vote was largely peaceful, the tense scenes at some polling stations saw people angry at the delay in the announcement of the winner, while others vied for position in the sprawling queues.
The delay in announcing the election result was due to logistical reasons rather than a disagreement over who the winner was, said election officials in Nairobi, where about 3.8 million Kenyans were expected to turn up at voting booths.
The delay in announcing the result is meant to ensure that the process is done in a manner “most conducive both to the electoral process and the overall conduct of the election”, according to the election commission.
Kenya’s election this year has been marred by violence and allegations of election-related rigging. It is the latest in an ever-growing list of countries in Africa to have an election marred by violence.
In the end, there was no outright winner in the election, which was seen as highly competitive between President Uhuru Kenyatta of The National Super Alliance and Raila Odinga of the African National Super Alliance, of which he was a member until he was dumped from the alliance last month.
In the election, Kenyatta was seen as narrowly leading Odinga to defeat after a period of intense campaigning. It was not entirely clear who would be declared to have won the election before the final official result was announced in December.
Odinga’s rival, former Vice-President KANU party leader Ruto, has been critical of the delay in announcing the election result, claiming it amounts to a waste of time and money. But on Tuesday evening the electoral commission said the delay did not “in any way” affect the outcome of the election.
“There is no evidence to suggest that the delay has any effect on the outcome of the election,” said the commission’