Kenya in tense wait for election results

Many are closely watching the poll in a country regarded as a beacon of regional stability

A man looks for names on voting registers posted outside Kilimani Primary School polling station in Nairobi, Kenya. Getty

Voters queue while waiting for polls to open during Kenya's general election in the informal settlement of Mathare in Nairobi. AFP

Voters check their names on an electoral roll in Nairobi. AFP

An election official holds up a ballot box to show that it is empty before polls open in Kibera. AFP

Maasai voters queue to take part in Kenya's general election in Kajiado. AFP

Kenya's Deputy President and presidential candidate of the Kenya First political party coalition William Ruto, centre, casts his ballot at a polling station in Sugoi, near Eldoret. AFP

A Maasai man casts his ballot during Kenya's general election in Kajiado. AFP

People line up to vote at the Oltepesi Primary School in Nairobi. AP

A voter takes part in the general election at Kosachei Primary School. Reuters

People line up to cast their vote at Kosachei Primary School. Reuters

An election official marks the hand of a voter at the Kibera primary school in Nairobi. AP

People line up to vote at the Kibera primary school in Nairobi. AP

A voter verifies his ballot papers at the Old Kibera Primary School polling station in Kibera. AFP

People look for their names on voting registers posted outside Kibera Primary School in Nairobi. Getty

Men watch live news aired on a public projector on the eve of the elections in the centre of Kibera informal settlement. Getty

Kenyans are waiting anxiously for the results of the country's presidential election after a largely peaceful poll, with low turnout in some areas suggesting growing frustration with the political elite.

Although presidential front-runners William Ruto and Raila Odinga have vowed to maintain calm following Tuesday's poll, the memory of past election-related violence remains fresh for many Kenyans, who have urged political parties to accept the results.

With pressure building on the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission, which has to declare the results by August 16, officials worked overnight to count votes and dispel fears of cheating.

"We call for patience among Kenyans as we undertake this rigorous exercise and also endeavour to complete this exercise as soon as possible," IEBC chairman Wafula Chebukati said in a late-night briefing.

Kenyans, some of whom lined up before dawn to cast their ballot, voted in six elections on Tuesday, choosing a new president as well as senators, governors, MPs, female representatives and about 1,500 county officials.

Despite the early show of enthusiasm, however, turnout in some areas appeared to be weak, suggesting that for some Kenyans at least, patience with years of unfulfilled promises was running out.

Even those who showed up early to vote said they were tired of electing political leaders who had done little to improve their lives.

"All along we have been doing elections, getting promises but we see no change," said George Otieno Henry, a 56-year-old artisan.

"I hope this time it will be better," he told AFP in Kibera, one of Nairobi's largest slums.

By 4.00pm local time, 10 hours after polling began, turnout was at just over 56 per cent of the 22 million registered voters, according to the IEBC.

Comparable figures for the August 2017 election were not immediately available but overall turnout reached 78 per cent in that vote.

Mr Ruto, the country's deputy president, and Mr Odinga, a veteran opposition leader now backed by the ruling party, have both pledged to tackle the cost-of-living crisis and ease the lives of ordinary Kenyans.

But many are bracing for the pair to spar over the results, reflecting earlier polls in the East African nation where no presidential election outcome has gone uncontested since 2002.

Once the heir-apparent, Mr Ruto, 55, found himself banished to the sidelines after two-term President Uhuru Kenyatta — who cannot run for a third time — joined hands with his former foe Mr Odinga, 77, in a move that stunned the country.

Since then, the wealthy businessman has cast himself as the champion of "hustlers" trying to eke out a living in a country ruled by "dynasties" — the Kenyatta and Odinga families that have dominated Kenyan politics since independence from Britain in 1963.

With a third of Kenya's population living in poverty, economic pressures weighed on voters even before the war in Ukraine sent the prices of essential goods soaring.

Before the election, some observers said that the economy could surpass tribal affiliations as a factor driving voter behaviour. Others said politicians' failure to tackle the crisis could keep people away from the polling booth altogether.

"Many Kenyans … have cited their lack of faith in politicians to improve their current economic circumstances as the main reason for not participating in the August polls," Oxford Economics said in a note last week.

Analysts have suggested that Mr Odinga, a former political prisoner and prime minister who is making his fifth stab at the presidency, could edge past his younger rival.

If neither wins more than 50 per cent, Kenya will stage a run-off vote for the first time in its history.

Kenya's international partners are closely watching the election in a country regarded as a beacon of regional stability.

Local polls were suspended in several areas on Tuesday, triggering a protest in one case, but police said the electoral process had largely "remained calm and peaceful with no major incidents to report".

Security was tight, with a view to preventing a repeat of the post-election violence that has hit Kenya in the past.

The 2007 poll was followed by politically motivated ethnic clashes that killed more than 1,100 people, while Mr Odinga's challenge to the 2017 election result was met with a heavy-handed police response that left dozens dead.