NAIROBI, Kenya—The National Assembly has passed the Elections (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill, 2024, proposing changes to Kenya’s electoral framework, including the removal of the legal requirement for the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) to livestream election results announcements at polling stations.
The decision, made on October 22, comes ahead of the 2027 General Election and places renewed focus on electoral transparency, accountability and public access to results.
The Bill, Senate Bill No. 29 of 2024, was sponsored by National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichung’wah and Minority Leader Junet Mohamed. It seeks to implement recommendations arising from the National Dialogue Committee (NADCO) and amend several provisions of the Elections Act, 2011.
At the centre of the debate is Clause 22, which proposes amendments to Section 39 of the Act, which governs the determination, transmission and declaration of election results.
Under the proposed changes, the IEBC would no longer be expressly required by law to establish a mechanism for livestreaming results as they are announced at polling stations.
However, the commission would retain its responsibilities for electronically transmitting results, verifying figures and publishing polling-station results forms through an online public portal.
Livestreaming enables voters, political parties, journalists and election observers to follow results announcements in real time and compare the figures with those subsequently transmitted to tallying centres. The proposed change has therefore raised questions about the public’s ability to monitor the electoral process as results are announced.
The Bill also proposes changes to other aspects of electoral administration, including voter registration, the designation of polling stations, political party nominations and the recall of elected representatives.
On the recall of Members of Parliament, the National Assembly approved an amendment requiring support from at least one-third of registered voters in every ward within a constituency to initiate the recall of a National Assembly member.
For senators, the threshold would apply to every constituency within the affected county. A simple majority of participating voters would determine the outcome of a recall by-election.
The Bill will now return to the Senate for consideration of the amendments adopted by the National Assembly.
