As a result, Ruto won his first run against Raila Odinga, who was running for a 5th term. William Samoei Arap Ruto garnered 50.49% of the vote, while Odinga received 48.5%.
KAMPALA | NOW THEN DIGITAL — William Samoei Arap Ruto has won the Kenyan presidential election and will replace Uhuru Kenyatta, who has served two five-year terms.
- As a first time candidate, William Samoei Arap Ruto won 50.49% of the vote, beating out former prime minister Raila Odinga, who was running for a fifth term.
- Some candidates conceded defeat, including David Mwaire. George Wajackoyah accused the polls of being rigged, while Odinga’s chief agent claimed the elections were conducted in an opaque manner.
- Following his election win, William Samoei Arap Ruto thanked the Electoral Commission and his competitors for remaining calm during the entire process.
The election result has been disputed by IEBC commissioners. Observers say it could be weeks before the new president takes office. Here are some of the key questions that need to be answered. Read on to get a clearer picture of what is going on in Kenya.
Deputy President William Ruto wins Kenyan presidential election
Deputy President William Samoei Arap Ruto has been declared Kenya’s new president. He narrowly defeated five-time contender Raila Odinga to win the election.
Ruto campaigned on the issues of economic hardship and youth unemployment, while Odinga focused on ethnicity and the status of women.
The announcement of the results was delayed, however, by scuffles and accusations of vote-rigging by Mr Odinga’s campaign. Police imposed an order at the declaration venue.
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The resulting chaos at the main counting centre in Nairobi prompted the country’s diplomatic community to flee the country. Ruto’s supporters clashed with police, and officials had to evacuate them from the main counting hall.
The election results have been contested, and the EC has called for an investigation into the said electoral fraud. Kenya’s Deputy President William Ruto has praised the election process, but it is far from clear whether it is a democracy.
Mr Ruto worked as a chicken seller in his early days and portrayed himself as a brash outsider. He was mentored by the late Daniel Arap Moi, who was a political guru, and who is considered a political father to many politicians, including outgoing President Uhuru Kenyatta.
The political career of Dr William Samoei Arap Ruto is a direct result of his relationship with President Moi.
The suffocating drought, high living costs, and public debt are all major issues in Kenya. As of May, the nation’s public debt reached 8.56 trillion shillings and was projected to consume half of the nation’s state revenue.
The IMF has warned that the country is in danger of financial distress and has been considering debt restructuring as a solution.
However, Ruto has ruled out restructuring the country’s debt. He will now face an uphill battle to deal with these challenges, especially in the future.
In his remarks shortly after the announcement, William Samoei Arap Ruto praised the country’s Electoral Commission as well as his competitors for remaining calm and firm.
“It is a wonderful evening, and I want to thank God that we are here to witness this momentous occasion. I want to thank God for getting us to this point. I want to thank God that today, we have concluded this election,” Ruto said.
“We are here because there is a God in Heaven. Without God, we wouldn’t be here. The hero of this election is the IEBC, led by Wafula Chebutaki. The IEBC amazed all of us. I want to thank my worthy competitor Hon. Raila Odinga. We dwelled on issues and tried to sell an agenda to the people of Kenya during the campaign.”
IEBC commissioners disown the results of the Kenyan election
Kenya’s electoral commission was divided on the final presidential election results after four IEBC commissioners disowned the final results.
The commission had planned an elaborate program for the final tallying process that was to include candidates, diplomats, and the media. The election results were not disclosed, and the process was opaque, the commissioners say.
The four commissioners, including vice chairperson Juliana Cherera, said at a press conference that they will not accept the results until all results are vetted.
Three of the commissioners and the deputy chairperson of the IEBC disowned the results of the presidential election, saying the process was opaque and too long.
The election results will be announced by the Bomas of Kenya, but some IEBC officials said they’re too opaque. The IEBC is a non-partisan body and does not take sides in election processes.
William Samoei Arap Ruto is now the newly elected president of Kenya. He will be accompanied by more than 200 officers, including 45 to be his deputy.
He has always boasted of humble beginnings, selling chickens at the age of 12. But despite this, he has hired politicians and technocrats to lead the campaign.
Only one major polling firm had Ruto ahead of Raila before the election. Raila’s long road to political retirement was strewn with violence.
After the announcement at Bomas, four of the five commissioners, including Cherera, hailed their tenure at the commission and said they expected a mandate as envisaged by the constitution.
During the announcement, Cherera declined to take questions from journalists and said he would release a detailed report at a later date.
At the time of the announcement, the election results in Kenya were still under dispute.
Ruto and the YK 92 Group
William Samoei Arap Ruto is a Kenyan politician and entrepreneur who has amassed an estimated $100 million in assets.
He was born on 21 December 1966 and is currently serving as Deputy President of Kenya. He was a Member of Parliament from 1998 to 2013.
From August to December 2002, Ruto was Minister of Home Affairs in the Daniel Arap Moi administration, and from April to October 2010, he served as Minister of Higher Education.
In the 2022 presidential election, William Samoei Arap Ruto was elected President of Kenya. He replaces Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta whose two terms have expired.
Ruto was born in Uasin Gishu County, Kenya, where he attended Sambut Primary School, Wareng Secondary School, and Kapsabet Boys High School. He attended the University of Nairobi, where he earned a PhD in the same field in 2018.
He served as an English teacher in the North Rift region before being recruited by the YK92 Group. In 1992, he became the organisation’s treasurer, and later lobbied for President Daniel Arap Moi’s reelection.
The YK ’92 Group had a simple game plan: splash cash in the country’s fissures. The 500-shilling note was the highest denomination of cash at the time.
Known as Jirongo, the brigade is still blamed for looting the country. Ruto was a factotum to Jirongo and he is known as the “King of the 500-shilling note” for the YK ’92 Group.
Before venturing into politics, Ruto worked as a teacher for two years before being appointed as the treasurer of the Youth for KANU 92 Group lobby group. The group was set up to rally support for the late President Daniel Moi.
He was elected MP for Eldoret North in 1997 and served as the government’s assistant minister for Home Affairs for the first two years after defeating incumbent Reuben Chesire.
William Ruto photos
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