On November 7th, Kibra will hold a parliamentary by-election, but one candidate will not be on the ballot: Jubilee's MacDonald Mariga. According to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), Mariga is not a registered voter and therefore cannot contest.
This decision is a significant setback for the Jubilee party, which had chosen Mariga as its top candidate in the by-election. The party had hoped to challenge ODM's Imran Okoth, who has controlled the constituency's politics since it was split from Langata.
Mariga, accompanied by Langata MP Nickson Korir and other leaders allied to Deputy President William Ruto, has vowed to appeal the decision, claiming he is a registered voter. However, so far, only ANC's Eliud Owalo, Ford Kenya's Khamisi Butich, and four independent candidates have received the green light from IEBC to contest.
ODM's nominee, Bernard Okoth (also known as Imran), has yet to present his nomination papers to IEBC due to a dispute over his nomination filed by his competitor Peter Orero, which is being handled by the party's disputes tribunal.
Campaigns for the seat have begun in the constituency, which fell vacant following the death of Ken Okoth.
