Democratic Party (DP) candidate Stanley Kenga has formally accused two Members of Parliament allied with the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) of intimidating voters and illegally invading polling stations during the hotly contested Magarini constituency by-election on Thursday, November 27, 2025. The allegations heighten tensions in a mini-poll already fraught with accusations of electoral malpractice and high-level interference.

Speaking to the media on Thursday morning, Mr. Kenga identified Kilifi South MP Ken Chonga and Lamu East MP Ruweida Mohamed as the individuals leading the interference. He claimed the two legislators, allied to his main opponent, ODM's Harrison Kombe, were creating disturbances and were not authorized to be at the polling stations. "There are leaders from government who are not from Magarini, and they are trying to invade the polling stations," Kenga stated during an interview with NTV, as reported on November 27, 2025. He has called on national security agencies to intervene and take immediate action against the MPs.

Mr. Kenga also reported that some of his party agents were temporarily locked out of the Marekebuni Primary polling station, an issue he said was resolved after party intervention. These claims mirror similar complaints from the ODM camp, where Harrison Kombe also alleged that some of his agents had been denied access to polling stations, raising concerns about the transparency of the electoral process.

A High-Stakes Contest

The Magarini by-election was necessitated by a Supreme Court ruling that nullified Mr. Kombe's narrow 21-vote victory over Mr. Kenga in the August 2022 General Election due to irregularities, including ballot stuffing. The contest is widely seen as a political litmus test for the influence of both the ruling coalition and the newly formed opposition, led by former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, whose DCP party is backing Kenga.

The campaign period has been contentious. On Monday, November 24, 2025, Mr. Gachagua accused the Vice Chairperson of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), Fahima Araphat Abdallah, of attempting to meddle in the by-election. He alleged she met with senior county officials to unlawfully influence the appointment of presiding officers in favour of the ODM candidate. The IEBC, through its chairperson Erastus Ethekon, dismissed these allegations as weighty but unfounded, assuring all parties of a free, fair, and transparent election. The commission clarified that the list of poll officials was shared with all political parties on November 14, 2025, for review and that no officials had been deployed at the time of the accusations.

Security and Integrity Concerns

In response to the tense political climate, security has been significantly beefed up in Magarini. The IEBC Returning Officer, Joseph Mwafondo, confirmed that at least 50 police officers, including plainclothes officers and a rapid response unit, would secure the tallying centre at Mapimo Primary School. Two police officers have been assigned to each of the 193 polling stations. Mr. Mwafondo issued a stern warning against electoral offences, specifically prohibiting voters from carrying phones into polling booths or photographing their marked ballots, practices allegedly used for voter bribery.

The by-election features a crowded field of ten candidates, though it is primarily a two-horse race between Kombe's ODM and Kenga's DCP. The political dynamics were slightly altered just 48 hours before the poll when Kenya Social Congress (KSC) candidate John Masha stepped down to endorse the ODM candidate, Harrison Kombe. As voters cast their ballots, the allegations of intimidation and the heavy security presence underscore the critical importance of this election for the political landscape in the Coast region and its implications for the 2027 General Election. The conduct and outcome of this poll are under intense scrutiny from all political factions and the Kenyan public.