Legal Challenge Ahead of 2027 Polls

A coalition of senior opposition leaders has initiated a significant legal battle aimed at fundamentally reshaping how presidential election results are managed in Kenya. The petition, filed on Monday, November 17, 2025, at the High Court's Constitutional and Human Rights Division in Nairobi, challenges the long-standing practice of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) of centralising the verification, collation, and declaration of presidential results.

Represented by Gitobu Imanyara and Company Advocates, the "United Opposition Coalition" argues that this centralised system at the national tallying centre is unconstitutional, null, and void. The petitioners contend that the results declared by the 290 Constituency Returning Officers should be considered final and unalterable. They argue the IEBC chairperson's role should be limited to simply tallying these constituency-level results and declaring the winner, without any power of verification or alteration.

Constitutional Arguments and Demands

The core of the lawsuit rests on the interpretation of Articles 10, 38, 47, 81, 86, and 138 of the Constitution of Kenya. The opposition leaders assert that these articles establish a decentralised, transparent, and accountable electoral system. They argue that subjecting constituency results to a secondary layer of scrutiny at the national level has consistently fueled mistrust, political tension, and legal disputes in the 2013, 2017, and 2022 general elections.

The petition seeks several key declarations and orders from the High Court:

• A declaration that the centralisation of final verification and declaration of presidential results at the national tallying centre is unconstitutional.
• An order affirming that presidential results declared at the constituency level are final and binding.
• An order compelling the IEBC to implement mandatory ballot reconciliation at all polling stations before transmitting results.
• An order requiring the IEBC to gazette all polling stations at least six months before an election and publish the final voter register three months prior to voting day to ensure public scrutiny.

The petitioners, who include prominent figures like former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua and Wiper Party Leader Kalonzo Musyoka, maintain that these reforms are critical to protecting the sovereignty of the people and ensuring the credibility of the upcoming 2027 General Election.

Historical Context of Electoral Disputes

Kenya has a long and turbulent history of disputed presidential elections, often leading to significant political instability and violence, most notably after the 2007 polls. The 2010 Constitution was specifically designed to address these historical grievances by creating a more transparent and verifiable electoral process.

This new legal challenge builds on the precedent set by the landmark 2017 Court of Appeal ruling in IEBC v. Maina Kiai & 5 Others, which affirmed that results declared at the polling station and constituency levels are final, not provisional. This was further reinforced by the Supreme Court's historic annulment of the 2017 presidential election, where it cited massive "irregularities and illegalities" in the transmission of results and the IEBC's failure to conduct the election in accordance with the Constitution. That decision was a first for Africa and a watershed moment for the continent's democracies.

Implications for Kenya's Electoral Future

This lawsuit unfolds as Parliament is also considering the Elections (Amendment) Bill, 2024, a legislative proposal stemming from the bipartisan National Dialogue Committee (NADCO) talks. However, the bill primarily focuses on the mode of results transmission rather than their finality, which is the central issue in the High Court petition. Critics of the bill have raised concerns that some of its clauses could reduce transparency.

The IEBC, its newly appointed chairperson Erastus Ethekon, and the Attorney General have been named as respondents in the petition and are expected to file their responses by December 5, 2025. The case is poised to become a critical test of Kenya's electoral laws and constitutional framework. Its outcome could significantly alter the powers of the IEBC and redefine the architecture of presidential elections, potentially shifting the focus of electoral integrity and disputes from a single national point to 290 distinct constituency centres. Further directions from the court are expected on December 16, 2025.