The former Prime Minister Raila Odinga has castigated Kenya’s Electoral system as one of the most expensive democratic processes in the world riddled with corruption and procurement irregularities.
Speaking in media interview with NTV, Odinga said the procurement of voter materials had been a conduit of corruption that needs relooking.
“The system is bloated to enable looting,” Odinga charged, urging the abolition of the current voter register and advocating for the use of national ID cards as the sole requirement to cast a ballot.
“Why are Kenyan elections among the most expensive in the world? It’s not rocket science. If you have an ID, you should vote. There are areas where people don’t have voter cards, and this skews the register,” he said.
He argued that requiring separate voter cards disenfranchises many, particularly in underserved regions.
His sentiments come amid calls to the national assembly to approve a fresh budget for IEBC to kickstart voter registration, byelections and delimitation of boundaries processes.
To address these inefficiencies, he proposed staggering elections rather than holding six races—presidential, gubernatorial, senatorial, MP, Woman Rep, and MCA—on a single day.
“The way we conduct elections creates confusion and drives up costs. It’s time for a radical rethink,” he said, positioning his party as a champion of leaner, fairer electoral processes.
He further urged the newly constituted Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), led by Chairperson Erastus Ethekon, to restore public confidence in the institution.
Years of disputed results, Odinga warned, have left many Kenyans sceptical about the credibility of the electoral process.
“There’s been a lot of reckless talk lately about vote rigging in 2027,” Odinga said, condemning political rhetoric that he believes erodes trust in democratic institutions.
He emphasised that his political record is often misunderstood.
He now wants the newly sworn in team to seal the corruption loopholes as top priorities.