The 2022 Kenyan general election was held on 9 August 2022 to elect the President, members of the National Assembly, senators, county governors, women representatives and members of county assemblies. It was the twelfth general election in Kenya and the third since the promulgation of the 2010 Constitution. In the presidential election, William Ruto of the United Democratic Alliance (UDA) was elected president, receiving 50.49% of the vote and defeating Raila Odinga of the Azimio la Umoja coalition, who received 48.85%.
Incumbent president Uhuru Kenyatta was not eligible for a third term according to the constitution, nor county governors who had served two terms. The 2022 general election saw the lowest number of presidential candidates cleared since the multi-party system was implemented in 1992. Parliamentarians were elected to sit in the 13th Parliament of Kenya.
On 22 August, Odinga filed a petition with the Supreme Court of Kenya challenging the results announced by Wafula Chebukati, the chairman of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission. On 5 September, the Supreme Court rejected the challenge and upheld Ruto's victory. Observers had described the elections as largely peaceful and transparent. Odinga said he would respect the court verdict, although he still claimed victory.
Background
The Constitution of Kenya requires that a general election of members of parliament be held on the second Tuesday of August on every fifth year, which meant that the general election was scheduled for 9 August 2022. If Kenya is at war, the election can be delayed if a resolution is passed in each House of Parliament by at least two-thirds of all the members of the House. Such a resolution can delay the election by up to six months, and may be passed multiple times provided that the delays do not cumulatively exceed 12 months.
The constitution requires that a presidential election take place at the same time as the general election. In the event that prior to the next general election the position of president falls vacant and the office of deputy president is also vacant (who otherwise would assume the office of president), a presidential election could be held at an earlier date. According to the constitution, in such circumstances, an election needs to be held within sixty days after the vacancy arose in the office of president.
Incumbent president Uhuru Kenyatta was not eligible to pursue a third term due to the two-term limit in the constitution. County governors who had served two terms at the helms of their respective counties were also ineligible for a third term.
Electoral system
The President of Kenya is elected using a modified version of the two-round system: to win in the first round, a candidate must receive over 50% of the vote nationally and 25% of the vote in at least 24 of Kenya's 47 counties. If no candidate achieves this, a second round is held between the top two candidates, in which the candidate with the most votes wins.
The Parliament of Kenya consists of two houses: the Senate (upper house) and the National Assembly (lower house), both of which were fully renewed for five-year terms. Those elected in 2022 formed the 13th Parliament of Kenya.
The National Assembly has 350 members, of which 290 are elected in single-member constituencies by first-past-the-post voting. Of the remaining 60, 47 are reserved for women and are elected from single-member constituencies based on the 47 counties, also using the first-past-the-post system. The remaining 13 seats include 12 nominated by political parties based on their number of seats and a Speaker, elected by the assembly from outside of it as an ex officio member. The nominated members are reserved for youths, persons with disabilities and workers.
The 68 members of the Senate are elected by four methods; 47 are elected in single-member constituencies based on the counties by first-past-the-post voting. Parties are then assigned a share of 16 seats for women, two for youth and two for persons with disabilities based on their seat share. A speaker is also elected as an ex officio member.
Presidential candidates
Only four presidential aspirants and their running mates from parties were cleared. Walter Mong'are's nomination to run for presidency was revoked, after it emerged his degree was not from a recognized university as required by law. The final list of presidential candidates was;
- David Waihiga Mwaure, leader of the Agano Party
- Raila Odinga, former Prime Minister of Kenya (2008–2013) and leader of the Orange Democratic Movement, under Azimio la Umoja One Kenya Alliance. He was a presidential candidate in 1997, as well as the runner-up in 2007, 2013, and 2017.
- William Ruto, Deputy President of Kenya (2013–2022) and leader of the United Democratic Alliance, under Kenya Kwanza Alliance party
- George Wajackoyah, leader of the Roots Party Kenya
Campaign
Leading up to the 2022 election, a new political dynamic based on class politics was emerging in Kenya, framed as "hustlers" versus "dynasties". The families of incumbent President Uhuru Kenyatta and opposition leader Raila Odinga had dominated Kenyan politics since independence in 1963. Moreover, Kenya has traditionally been ruled by presidents who belong to either the Kikuyu people – like Kenyatta – or the Kalenjin people, like William Ruto. The potential victory of Odinga, a Luo, would mark a departure for the country, which has 44 ethnic groups.
Ruto initially supported Odinga in the 2007 election against Mwai Kibaki. The announcement of the presidential results led to ethnic clashes among Kenya's tribes. Police crackdowns on protesters and clashes that turned into ethnic attacks killed more than 1,000 people in post-election violence, eventually prompting a new constitution to devolve power. Ruto aligned himself with Kenyatta in 2013. Both Kenyatta and Ruto had been indicted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) on crimes against humanity charges for their alleged role in orchestrating the post-election violence in the 2007 election. The cases later collapsed, with former ICC chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda saying a relentless campaign of victim and witness intimidation made the trial impossible.
In March 2018, President Kenyatta and his former rival for the presidency, Odinga, stunned the public when they shook hands and declared a truce after post-election violence in 2017 left dozens of people dead. The two leaders also sought to expand the executive through the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) constitutional changes, which would have potentially allowed Kenyatta to stay in power as a prime minister. But despite the Supreme Court of Kenya ruling against the proposed amendments in August, the unexpected alliance has persevered, with Odinga attending official government functions with Kenyatta. Cracks within the Jubilee government began to appear, leading to an eventual fallout between Kenyatta and his deputy, Ruto.
Presidential nomination
In December 2021, the Mount Kenya Foundation, one of the country's most powerful and wealthy Kikuyu lobbies, announced their support for Odinga, while Kenyatta has repeatedly said that the next president will be "neither Kikuyu nor Kalenjin". On 10 December 2021, Odinga declared his intention to run for the presidency for the fifth time.
In January 2022, Ruto's United Democratic Alliance (UDA) announced a coalition pact with the Amani National Congress, FORD–Kenya and several other political parties. The new coalition was called Kenya Kwanza.
In February 2022, Kenyatta's Jubilee party announced that it would join the Azimio la Umoja coalition headed by Odinga, the leader of the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM). On 12 March 2022, at least 26 political parties, including major political parties Jubilee, Wiper, ODM and KANU, signed a co-operation pact endorsing Raila Odinga's presidential candidature. That same day, Kenyatta publicly endorsed Odinga for the presidency.
On 15 March 2022, the UDA and Kenya Kwanza endorsed Ruto as their presidential candidate.
Deputy presidential nomination
Several individuals showed interest in the position of deputy president. Azimio la Umoja held interviews for 10 prospective running mates, namely: Kalonzo Musyoka, Martha Karua, Peter Munya, Sabina Chege, Peter Kenneth, Stephen Kipkiyeny Tarus, Ali Hassan Joho, Wycliffe Oparanya, Lee Kinyanjui and Charity Ngilu. Musyoka, Odinga's two-time running mate, threatened to skip the interviews, but ultimately appeared for an interview on 10 May 2022. In the Kenya Kwanza camp, several names were rumoured to be possible running mates, namely: Rigathi Gachagua, Kindiki Kithure, Anne Waiguru, Ndindi Nyoro, Justin Muturi and Musalia Mudavadi.
In April 2022, Roots Party candidate George Wajackoyah named Justina Wamae, a former candidate for Parliament from Mavoko Constituency, as his running mate. On 15 May 2022, Kenya Kwanza endorsed Rigathi Gachagua as Ruto's running mate. Azimio la Umoja selected Martha Karua as Odinga's running mate on 16 May 2022. The Agano Party's Waihiga Mwaure selected Ruth Mucheru Mutua as his running mate.
Manifestos
Azimio la Umoja was the first political outfit to launch their manifesto on 6 June 2022. The ten point manifesto voiced key issues such as a corruption-free government. The manifesto came in the form of a declaration and promised to strengthen devolution; economically empower women; waste no single child; spur the economic pillar; facilitate climate-smart agriculture; revamp the manufacturing sector; enact responsible leadership; preserve sovereignty of the people; increase access to clean water; create "Baba Care", which would focus on social protection and transformation; and upscale health coverage to universal health care.
Ruto's UDA and Wajackoyah's Roots Party launched their manifestos on 30 June 2022. Ruto, who intended to apply a "bottom-up economic model", presented a manifesto promising to revive the economy, provide healthcare for all, promote micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME), and implement a two-thirds gender rule and affordable housing, among other policies.
Wajackoyah intended to legalise marijuana for commercial purposes, introduce snake farming, export dog meat, shut and bring down the standard-gauge railway, hang the corrupt, suspend the constitution, introduce four-day work week, move capital city to Isiolo, create eight states, and repatriate idle foreigners.
On 4 July 2022, Agano Party presidential candidate David Mwaure Waihiga launched his 12-point manifesto. He argued that it was time for the country to move forward and start on a new slate in terms of leadership. He planned to pledge alliance to the constitution; to family, women, youth, persons living with disability, county governments, workers, business owners, the economy, religious institutions and the environment; as well as to the international community. He also promised to recover public monies stashed in offshore accounts as well as dissolve the Nairobi City County government.
Electoral candidates debates
On 2 March 2022, the Media Council of Kenya, in conjunction with the Media Owners Association and Kenya Editors' Guild, announced plans to conduct presidential debates in July 2022. Clifford Machoka was appointed to organise the presidential and deputy presidential debates. The debates were scheduled to run on 11, 19, and 26 July 2022 at Catholic University of Eastern Africa; and they were to be broadcast live across most television and radio stations, and their online platforms. A Nairobi City County gubernatorial debate was also scheduled amongst the presidential and deputy presidential debates due to it being Kenya's capital. Each of the debates ran in two sessions; the first session involved candidates who stood below 5% in the last three opinion polls, while the second session was between candidates reaching above 5% in the same polls.