This archive report was first published on 6 September 2021.
On August 6, 2022, a former nominated senator, Paul Njoroge, petitioned the court to declare the 2022 General Election null and void, citing irregularities in the election process.
The move, if successful, would extend President Uhuru Kenyatta's term in office beyond its scheduled end date of August 9, 2022.
According to the petition, the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) made an announcement of the election date at a time when it was not properly constituted, with only three commissioners in office.
Njoroge argues that the IEBC's actions would shorten the 5-year constitutional term that the president is required to serve, if the General Elections are held on the scheduled date of August 9, 2022.
"The intended presidential election of 9th August is imposed on the people of Kenya through an administrative fiat of the IEBC and therefore illegal, irregular and illegitimate," the petition stated.
Earlier, Njoroge had petitioned the IEBC to alter the 2022 election date, proposing that it be pushed to August 2023.
On August 11, the central independent procurement appeals review board barred IEBC from awarding a tender for the supply of the new Kenya Integrated Electoral Management System, forcing the electoral body to go back to the drawing board.
Recently, new IEBC Commissioners were sworn in, ending a quorum crisis, after the High Court and the Court of Appeal declared that the commission was not fully constituted while ruling on the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) Bill.
