NAIROBI, Kenya — In a dramatic twist that cools down a bubbling political firestorm, the government has broken its silence to clarify that the mandatory public livestreaming of presidential election results has not been abolished.
Contrary to widespread media reports that triggered public fury over the weekend, the requirement for the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) to broadcast real-time results remains legally binding for the upcoming 2027 General Election.
The high-stakes clarification was delivered by Parliamentary Affairs Principal Secretary Dr. Aurelia Rono, who moved to correct what she termed misleading narratives surrounding the passage of the controversial Elections (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill, 2024.
The Official Retraction
“Contrary to these reports, the amendment passed by the National Assembly retains the requirement on the IEBC to establish a mechanism for the livestreaming of election results,” Dr. Rono stated emphatically.
The panic began when reports emerged from Parliament indicating that lawmakers had quietly deleted Section 39 of the Elections Act—the critical legal clause that forces the electoral body to transmit and display results transparently to the public. Civil society groups and opposition figures had quickly weaponized the reports, warning of a calculated plot to rig the next election in the dark.
How the Law Was Saved
According to Dr. Rono, while the amendment bill initially contained a clause (Clause 22) seeking to eliminate the livestreaming requirement, the National Assembly explicitly voted to delete that offensive clause before passing the bill.
By rejecting Clause 22, Parliament effectively protected the existing law.
Why This Matters
The livestreaming of results from polling stations to a national tallying center has been a cornerstone of electoral transparency in Kenya, heavily instituted following the contested 2017 and 2022 presidential elections.
With Dr. Rono’s assurance, the burden now shifts squarely back to the IEBC to set up a foolproof, unhackable electronic transmission mechanism to stream results live to Kenyans when they head to the polls in 2027.