Raila Odinga, a historic figure in Kenyan politics, was on Saturday at the head of the presidential election, ahead of outgoing vice-president William Ruto, according to partial official results covering nearly 30% of the polling stations.
At the beginning of the afternoon, Odinga totaled 52.54% of the vote (2,288,315 votes), against 46.76% (2,036,795 votes) for William Ruto, out of 29.92% of the polling stations, according to official results broadcast from Nairobi, in the room where the Independent Electoral Commission (IEBC) carries out the collection, counting and verification of results.
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Four days after 22.1 million Kenyans were called to the polls on Tuesday, the country is still waiting to know the name of the successor to Uhuru Kenyatta who, after serving two terms since 2013, is not eligible to vote. run for a third.
If four candidates were in the running, the election boils down to a duel between two big favorites: Raila Odinga, a historic opposition figure who received the support of Mr. Kenyatta for his fifth presidential candidacy, and William Ruto, the outgoing Vice President.
IEBC chief Wafula Chebukati admitted on Friday that the tally of results was “
not going as fast
” as expected.
On Friday, several Kenyan media also interrupted the live vote counts they were conducting on their side, raising questions and impatience in the population.
These counts showed a tight neck and neck between the two favorites.
If Kenya is considered an island of stability and growth in the heart of a tormented region, the results of all the presidential elections since 2002 have been disputed.
Some post-election crises have plunged the country into violence, such as in 2007-2008 when the contestation of the results led to inter-community clashes, killing more than 1,100 people and hundreds of thousands displaced.
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During the campaign, Odinga and Ruto pledged that they would respect the results of free and fair elections, pledging to take any grievances to court and not through violence.
According to all local and foreign observers, the 2022 election went well overall, despite a few isolated incidents.
This election was marked by a sharp drop in turnout: according to the IEBC around 65% of the 22.1 million voters went to the polls on Tuesday, a sharp drop from the 78% recorded in the August 2017 election. .