Rights groups demand apology from IEBC for 'bungled' by-elections

KHRC Executive Director Davis Malombe (centre), INUKA Kenya Executive Director Kawive Wambua, IMLU Executive Director Wangechi Kahuria, Transparent International Executive Director and Siasa Place Tabitha Oluoch address the Press in Nairobi, on December 4, 2025. [ Jenipher Wachie, Standard]

Civil society organisations have demanded that the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) issue a public apology over the bungled November 27 by-elections.

The organisations accused the commission of failing to deliver free, fair, and credible polls, citing widespread malpractice ranging from voter bribery and violence to voter suppression, misuse of state resources, and clear signs of state interference.

Groups including the Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC), the Independent Medico-Legal Unit (IMLU), Transparency International, Siasa Place, and Inuka Kenya Ni Sisi said the electoral body has been compromised and cannot be trusted to oversee credible elections in 2027.

“The IEBC should admit failure in exercising or fulfilling its mandate and therefore apologise to Kenyans for failing to execute its constitutional role in the management of elections,” said Kawibe Wambua, CEO of Inuka Kenya Ni Sisi.

Addressing a press conference in Nairobi, the five organisations released accounts describing how state institutions and opposition actors allegedly planned and executed election-related irregularities and human rights violations aimed at subverting the will of the people in the 22 electoral areas.

“The recent by-elections have peeled back the veneer of a functioning democracy and exposed a deeply corrupted electoral environment, as well as an equally compromised electoral management body that cannot be trusted to conduct the next general election,” said KHRC executive director Davis Malombe.

In Kasipul, they documented the killing of two people during clashes between supporters of ODM’s Boyd Were and Philip Aroko at a political rally in Opondo area, Central Kasipul ward in Homa Bay. Several others reportedly sustained gunshot wounds during the confrontations.

They also reported violent clashes and roaming armed groups in Malava—some allegedly escorted by police—creating an atmosphere of fear. According to the organisations, the groups appeared to side with state-backed candidate David Ndakwa, who ran on the UDA ticket.

“These violations formed part of a deliberate architecture built on intimidation, bribery, misinformation, violence, and abuse of resources, all aimed at distorting the electoral process and determining the outcome, effectively compromising the will of the people,” Malombe said.

He argued that what should have been a routine democratic contest to fill positions in 22 electoral areas became a display of state manipulation, opposition publicity, and calculated violence.

In Mbeere North, observers reported that polling agents were attacked both en route to their stations and at Siakago Social Hall, where groups carrying crude weapons clashed during vote counting.

“Journalists covering the process had their phones confiscated, suggesting coordinated efforts to disrupt reporting. In Malava, candidate Seth Panyako claimed that state-backed goons stormed his hotel on the evening of the elections, allegedly targeting him and his staff to intimidate and disrupt operations,” said Malombe.

The findings further stated that testimonies from election monitors, journalists, and local observers pointed to state agencies as the key drivers of the violence and coercion witnessed during the by-elections, which were marred by widespread intimidation across several constituencies.

The civil society analysis cited voter bribery as the state’s most organised tactic, violating Section 9 of the Election Offences Act, which prohibits bribery before, during, or after voting.

“In virtually all 22 electoral areas, cash handouts were openly distributed during the campaign period by individuals identified by residents as state and county officials using government vehicles,” said IMLU executive director Grace Wangechi.

“Vehicles carrying money for voter inducement were reported to have altered number plates, one reportedly belonging to a city politician,” she added.

In Khwisero and Kasipul, police reportedly intercepted vehicles transporting crude weapons, indicating the mobilisation of armed groups to influence the elections.

Sheila Masinde, Executive Director of Transparency International Kenya, said there was extensive misuse of public resources during the by-elections to benefit ruling party candidates.

In Baringo County, for instance, government ministers ceremonially launched a fibre optic link and public Wi-Fi sites during the campaign period.

“While framed as development projects, their timing during the campaigns was a clear attempt to influence voters,” Masinde stated.

Similarly, in Mbeere North constituency, the organisations alleged that the ruling party’s candidate, Leonard Wa Muthende, utilised Sh600 million in state resources—including military helicopters, air force assets, and other government vehicles—to support his campaign.

“Cabinet Secretaries and senior county officials actively campaigned using official convoys and state platforms, blurring the line between governance and political activity. Several Boda Boda riders were paid 1,000 shillings each to mobilise voters for the broad-based candidates at dawn on November 27,” Masinde said.

“Across Magarini, Kasipul, Mbeere North, and Machakos, ‘super agents,’ including government-affiliated officers such as Cabinet Secretaries Geoffrey Ruku and Alfred Mutua, and MP Peter Kaluma were seen visiting polling stations where they were not registered voters. Their presence was a deliberate attempt to influence voter behaviour and intimidate polling staff,” she added.

They further documented cases of state-allied individuals captured on camera in Malava distributing branded mattresses and blankets to elderly voters.

Tabitha Oluoch from Siasa Place stated that in Mbeere North, voters were openly encouraged to photograph their marked ballots for cash handouts—a tactic used to enforce voter-buying, violating secrecy of the ballot and the sovereignty of the vote.

“The use of money to determine electoral outcomes undermines the principles of free and fair elections by enabling improper influence and corruption, creating an uneven playing field,” Oluoch said.

She added that this trend disenfranchises women, youth, and persons with disabilities, who lack equitable access to resources needed for competitive campaigns. But the issue extended beyond voter bribery.

Oluoch also criticised the announcement by Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen of full deployment of security forces in ‘hotspot areas’ on November 26—one day before voting—saying it exerted subtle pressure and suggested imminent violence.

“This had the potential to suppress voter turnout. Many young voters, in particular, did not turn up due to the electoral injustices,” she said.

As a result, she noted that overall turnout was less than 20 per cent, undermining the legitimacy of both the process and the outcome.

Election monitors and observers also documented voter coercion, including threats that voting for the opposition would lead to the loss of constitutionally protected rights.

The organisations stated that this tactic frightened several voters, particularly beneficiaries of state social protection programmes, who feared losing stipends or bursaries if they voted “the wrong way,” contributing further to low turnout.

In Malava, they reported that a chief summoned women’s groups and youth leaders, warning them that voting for an opposition candidate would “invite trouble from Nairobi.”

“The cue was taken from Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi and National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetangula, who said the William Ruto administration would give state appointments to UDA aspirants who lost in the primaries,” said Malombe.

“CS Musalia Mudavadi also campaigned in Malava, urging voters to elect candidates trusted by the President, and rewarding losing aspirants—including Simon Kangwana and the late Malulu Injendi’s son, Ryan Injendi—with diplomatic postings in Uganda and South Africa respectively.”

“Linking voter choice to presidential approval and future state rewards pressured citizens to vote in alignment with government preferences, subverting the sovereignty of the vote,” Malombe added.

The tactic, however, was not limited to one side of the political divide.

In Machakos, the organisations reported that opposition leader Kalonzo Musyoka used similar coercion during the Mumbuni North ward by-election, suggesting that a loss for the Wiper candidate would diminish his standing as a key opposition figure.

“That also happened in Embu, where the governor said that losing the Mbeere North seat would cost her the position of UDA party chair,” Malombe added.

Such actions, he said, violated Article 81 of the Constitution, which requires elections to be free from improper influence and undue pressure, as well as Section 10 of the Election Offences Act, which criminalises voter coercion.

He further noted that public endorsements and attempts to access polling stations by senior officials disrupted voters, pressured polling staff, and undermined electoral neutrality.

“Police were also positioned as instruments of political enforcement. In Malava, observers were briefly blocked from entering polling stations, while party agents operated freely,” said Malombe.

“When voters protested, police fired tear gas, forcing families—some with infants—to flee. Such actions breached constitutional provisions on freedom from violence and Section 104 of the Elections Act, which mandates facilitation rather than obstruction of voting and oversight,” he added.

The attempt by CS Ruku to forcefully enter a polling station at Kanyuambora—only to be stopped by residents accusing him of interference—was also highlighted as an example of state intervention.

Attention has now turned to the IEBC over its institutional failure to exert authority and guarantee Kenyans a credible election process.

“We know that many institutions have been captured; that is the reality. We know that IEBC underperformed. They did not fulfil their mandate, and therefore we call on them to rise to the task,” said Wangechi.

“The independence of the IEBC is non-negotiable. If they cannot meet expectations within the remaining 20 months, then a different direction must be taken,” she asserted.

Wambua added that the decision to clear Wa Muthende to run for the Mbeere North seat despite credible corruption allegations, including his linkage to a Sh643 million oxygen plant scandal, demonstrated clear inadequacy on the commission’s part.

“Even though the EACC clarified that it only advised the IEBC on Wa Muthende’s suitability and did not clear him, it is concerning that the IEBC failed to take legal action to block his candidacy, as it did with other candidates in the past,” Wambua said.

He cited instances where the EACC blacklisted 241 politicians in 2022 over integrity concerns and successfully moved to court to block some from contesting after the IEBC had cleared them.

“Clearly, this did not happen here, which marks a regression in electoral integrity. It is foolhardy to believe the IEBC could not have done the same for Wa Muthende, but the explanation lies in the fact that he was a state-backed candidate running under President William Ruto’s UDA party,” Wambua added.

Failure by the IEBC to act on widespread voter bribery was also cited as an indicator of institutional collapse.

“While we acknowledge that the IEBC fined Aroko and Were Sh1 million over electoral violence, we are concerned that it failed to rein in the massive voter bribery seen in all electoral areas,” Wambua added.

“It is incumbent upon the IEBC to demonstrate commitment to constitutional requirements safeguarding electoral integrity, including vetting candidates’ eligibility in strict compliance with Chapter Six of the Constitution,” he said.

The organisations have therefore called on the commission to fully exercise its mandate to regulate campaign spending by candidates and political parties.