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A fresh political headache has emerged for the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission following strong constitutional declarations made by former Chief Justice David Maraga regarding election management procedures.
The former head of the judiciary raised serious legal questions over the traditional operation of a central command location for presidential results, sparking intense national debate among electoral experts, political parties, and civil society groups.
Maraga pointed out that the Constitution does not provide for a national tallying centre to alter or recalculate vote counts coming in from constituency levels.
He emphasized that under the law, final presidential result verification and collation occur at the primary polling and constituency levels.
Consequently, the primary constitutional duty of the commission chair is strictly to declare official results compiled from primary polling records rather than engage in retallying votes at a central facility.
Demanding an immediate overhaul of current operational procedures, Maraga insisted that there should be no centralized tallying hub established at Bomas of Kenya or anywhere else in the country for upcoming general elections.
He argued that setting up centralized tallying points creates unnecessary bureaucratic delays, risks administrative manipulation, and undermines the constitutional principle that election outcomes are determined at individual polling stations.
The former Chief Justice’s stance presents significant administrative challenges for electoral officials who have historically relied on a centralized national command structure to verify documentation before announcing final presidential totals.
Stakeholders across the political divide are now closely examining the legal implications of the statement, with opposition figures pushing for strict compliance while government allies question the operational feasibility of declaring results without a centralized coordination platform.
The issue threatens to trigger fresh litigation as institutions navigate compliance with election frameworks.
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