Kenyan authorities shut down private television and radio stations on Tuesday as thousands of supporters of opposition leader Raila Odinga gathered in a Nairobi park where he was due to take the presidential oath in an act of protest.
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Odinga’s supporters insist that he, not President Uhuru Kenyatta, is Kenya’s legitimate leader, and that Kenyatta’s election was neither free nor fair.
Kenyatta’s election victory in August was nullified by the Supreme Court over irregularities, but he then won a re-run, which Odinga boycotted, and was sworn in for a second term in November.
The attorney-general had warned that Odinga could be charged with treason if the event went ahead &#8211; an offense that can carry the death penalty.
As thousands of people gathered in Uhuru Park, near Nairobi’s main business district, authorities began to force independent television and radio stations reporting on the gathering off air, several outlets said &#8211; the first such closures for about a decade.
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Many of the protesters were chanting pro-Odinga slogans, waving tree branches and blowing horns and whistles.
“Odinga is the one we recognize as the president and that is why we are swearing him in,” said hairdresser Benta Akinyi, 32.
<h3>NO POLICE VISIBLE</h3>
Although the police had said they would prevent any illegal assembly, there were no uniformed police in the park and no anti-riot officers or vehicles were visible. On the edge of the crowd, a single tear gas canister was fired.
Nearly 100 people were killed over the prolonged election period, mostly in clashes between Odinga supporters and police.
The local radio station Capital FM reported that Odinga’s supporters had been granted permission to use the park, but police and government spokespeople could not immediately be reached for comment.
“We intend to hold a peaceful event,” Odinga’s NASA alliance said in a statement late on Monday.
“We nonetheless wish to put the (ruling party) Jubilee administration on notice that we will accomplish our mission, come hell or high water. We advise our supporters to come prepared to stay until our mission is accomplished.”
By 10:20 a.m. (0720 GMT), a number of media outlets, including the independently-owned Citizen radio and television, NTV and KTN said that authorities had forced them off air. KTN had been showing a live video stream from the park.
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A Communications Authority spokeswoman said its senior managers were in a meeting and would comment later.
“The Communications Authority of Kenya has switched off Citizen Television and Radio in most parts of the country over the coverage of the NASA ‘swearing-in’ plan,” Citizen said on its website.
On Monday, Linus Kaikai, chairman of the Kenya Editors’ Guild, said editors had been summoned by the authorities and warned that they could be shut down if they covered the event.
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Additional reporting by Humphrey Malalo and Katharine Houreld; Writing by Maggie Fick; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky
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Broadcasters shut as thousands gather for Kenyan opposition ‘swearing in’

Several hundred supporters of Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga gathered on Tuesday morning at a park in downtown Nairobi, determined to “swear in as president” their leader who boycotted a re-run election last year.
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President Uhuru Kenyatta was sworn in for a second term in November after winning the repeat presidential election in October that Odinga boycotted due to doubts it would be free and fair.
Kenyatta had also been declared winner of the August election, but the Supreme Court later nullified that result, over irregularities.
Odinga said the October election was “fake” and earlier said a “people’s assembly” would swear him in on December 12. That did not happen, and a new event was planned for Tuesday.
By 0600 GMT, about 400 people were gathered in Uhuru Park, near Nairobi’s main business district.
Though the police had said they would prohibit any illegal assemblies on Tuesday, there were no uniformed police in the park and no anti-riot officers or vehicles.
Local radio station Capital FM reported that supporters had been granted permission by Kenyan authorities to use the park. Police and government spokesman were not immediately reachable for comment on that report.
Opposition supporters claim Odinga won the August vote.
”The swearing in that will happen today is legitimate based on the August 8 election. Odinga is the one we recognise as the president and that is why we are swearing him in,” said hairdresser Benta Akinyi, 32, standing near other opposition supporters blowing horns and whistles.
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Reporting by George Obulutsa; Additional reporting by Humphrey Malalo; Writing by Maggie Fick; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore
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Hundreds of Kenyan opposition supporters gather for “swearing in” of Raila Odinga

Kenya’s Supreme Court on Monday upheld the re-election of President Uhuru Kenyatta in last month’s repeat presidential vote.
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Chief Justice David Maraga said the court dismissed two legal challenges to the vote in a unanimous decision by six judges.
“As a consequence, the presidential election of 26th of October is hereby upheld,” he said.
The petitioners had argued, amongst other reasons, that the outcome should be voided because the election board did not seek fresh nominations after the earlier Aug. 8 poll was invalidated, and because the vote was not held in each of Kenya’s 291 voter constituencies.
The repeat election had been ordered by the Supreme Court after it nullified the results of the August presidential election.
The ruling clears the way for Kenyatta’s swearing-in on Nov. 28, but it is unlikely to end the worst political crisis in East Africa’s richest and most developed economy in a decade.
Police said on Sunday at least four people were killed overnight in a Nairobi slum that is a stronghold of opposition leader Raila Odinga.
He accused the government of being behind the killings, which followed at least five deaths on Friday as police tried to disperse opposition supporters.
In several areas of the capital, riots broke out on Sunday in response to the deaths, as residents lit cars and buses on fire and police responded with tear gas.
The court, created by a 2010 constitution that followed a violent political crisis three years earlier, made history on the continent when it nullified Kenyatta’s win in August elections, citing irregularities.
Odinga successfully petitioned against Kenyatta’s initial victory in the Aug. 8 vote and subsequently boycotted the repeat poll on Oct. 26, saying it would be unfair because the election commission had failed to implement reforms.
Kenyatta won with 98 percent of the vote, though opposition supporters staged a boycott and prevented polls from opening in the west of the country.
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Writing By Maggie Fick; Editing by Toby Chopra
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Kenya’s Supreme Court upholds repeat presidential vote

Kenya’s Supreme Court will rule on Monday on cases that seek to nullify the re-election of President Uhuru Kenyatta last month and the judges could order a fresh vote or clear the way for the incumbent to be sworn in for a second term.
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The two cases appear to represent a final chance for legal scrutiny of the Oct. 26 election and the ruling could end a protracted political crisis in which more than 60 people have been killed. Kenya is a hub for trade, diplomacy and security in East Africa.
“We will deliver judgment on the 20th,” Chief Justice David Maraga told lawyers at the end of a hearing on Thursday.
Kenyatta defeated opposition leader Raila Odinga in August but Odinga challenged the election and the court voided it citing procedural irregularities and ordered a fresh vote. The court’s decision was the first of its kind in Africa.
Odinga boycotted last month’s poll, saying the election commission had failed to carry out sufficient reforms. Kenyatta won with 98 percent of the vote.
Lawyers for the petitioners, a former lawmaker and two human rights activists, urged the court to nullify the repeat poll due to a lack of fresh nominations for candidates and violence in some areas that prevented voting.
Their counterparts for the election board, its chairman and Kenyatta, rejected the petition and urged the court to uphold the result to help end a crisis that has hurt the economy.
The Supreme Court was created by a 2010 constitution that followed a crisis over a disputed election in 2007 in which around 1,200 people were killed in ethnic clashes.
Analysts said the September ruling by the Supreme Court could embolden other judiciaries in Africa. This month, Liberia’s Supreme Court halted a presidential run-off until the election board investigates claims of fraud in the first round of voting.
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Reporting by Duncan Miriri; Editing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg
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Kenya court to rule on presidential election cases on Monday

A former lawmaker filed a petition at Kenya’s Supreme Court on Monday challenging the results of last month’s presidential election, a Reuters witness said, opening the door to potential legal challenges to President Uhuru Kenyatta’s re-election.
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The petition, filed by former legislator Harun Mwau, seeks to overturn Kenyatta’s victory in the Oct. 26 election, which was held after the Supreme Court nullified Kenyatta’s win in an Aug. 8 presidential election on procedural grounds. The grounds for Mwau’s petition were not immediately clear since his lawyer did not answer questions.
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Reporting by Humphrey Malalo,; writing by Katharine Houreld, editing by Larry King
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Petition filed at Kenya’s Supreme Court challenging election results

Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta has won over 96 percent of the votes counted so far from Thursday’s re-run election, according to a local media tally of numbers released at the constituency level by the election commission.
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he tally, compiled by the Daily Nation media group with 200 of 292 constituencies having reported, showed Kenyatta had won 5.58 million votes, well ahead of rival Raila Odinga, who has boycotted the process.
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Reporting by Duncan Miriri; Writing by David Lewis; Editing by Ed Cropley
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Kenya president ahead with 96% support – partial tally

The Kenyan shilling dropped to 103.75/85 per dollar on Monday, its lowest level since mid-August, traders said, mainly due to concerns about potential violence during a repeat presidential scheduled for Oct. 26.
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Opposition leader Raila Odinga has told supporters to boycott of the election, alleging polls won’t be free and fair. His call for national protests has raised fears that opposition supporters may be drawn into confrontations with police.
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Reporting by Duncan Miriri; editing by Katharine Houreld
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Kenyan shilling falls to lowest since mid-August on election jitters

A top Kenyan election commissioner has quit and fled the country a week before a re-run of the presidential vote, citing political intimidation and saying the election would be a “mockery” of democracy.
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The resignation of Roselyn Akombe, one of seven election board commissioners, is likely to be seized upon by the opposition to bolster its claim that the Oct. 26 poll will not be fair.
The re-run was ordered by the Supreme Court on Sept. 1 after it nullified the Aug. 8 re-election of President Uhuru Kenyatta, following a petition by opposition leader Raila Odinga.
Odinga withdrew from the repeat poll last week, saying the election board had not carried out reforms demanded by the opposition.
His move thrust the country, a key Western ally and also the richest economy in the region, deeper into political uncertainty.
The election board has said the poll will go ahead with seven candidates on the ballot, including Odinga.
Akombe, a member of the election board’s top panel, cited severe partisan political divisions among its eight members and the secretariat for her decision to leave.
“The commission has become a party to the current crisis. The commission is under siege,” she said in a statement issued from New York and dated Tuesday.
She told BBC radio she had fled from Kenya to New York after receiving numerous threats but did not identify who was threatening her.
The upcoming election would not be credible, she added.
“We need the commission to be courageous and speak out that this election as planned cannot meet the basic expectations of a credible election.”
Kenyan law requires the repeat election to be held within 60 days of nullification of the original vote.
Odinga has called daily demonstrations to protest against the election body. At least four people have been killed during protests following the court ruling.
Kenyatta has accused Odinga of pulling out of the race after sensing defeat and trying to cause chaos to force a power-sharing deal, something the opposition strongly denies.
More than 1,200 people were killed in violence after a disputed presidential election in Dec. 2007.
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Reporting by Duncan Miriri; Editing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg
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Kenyan election official flees country ahead of presidential poll

The Kenyan election board should include Ekuru Aukot, who polled less than 1 percent in presidential elections in August, on the ballot in the event of a re-run, the High Court ruled on Wednesday.
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“I find nothing to bar the petitioner from contesting the fresh election,” said Justice John Mativo.
His ruling means President Uhuru Kenyatta may still have a challenger on Oct. 26, when the re-run is scheduled despite the withdrawal of top opposition candidate on Raila Odinga over allegations of bias.
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reporting by Duncan Miriri; writing by Katharine Houreld; editing by John Stonestreet
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Kenya High Court rules minor candidate should be on ballot for poll re-run

Dominic Burbidge | University of Oxford
The Kenyan Supreme Court has found that the August 8 presidential election result is invalid. It blames the electoral commission, not the declared winner, Uhuru Kenyatta. Kenya’s leading newspaper praises the decision as a step towards the rule of law, but I am less sure about what this means for the ability of the political establishment to stick to the terms of the country’s constitution.
The Supreme Court has given the country 60 days to hold fresh elections. The time period is in accordance with section 140 (3) of the Constitution, but the court failed to tell the public exactly what the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) had done wrong. This leaves Kenya with a compromised commission rerunning an election.
Chief Justice David Maraga noted that the court had previously failed to provide a full judgment on the 2013 elections and this had not been received well. He then did exactly the same. Of course, the court had to provide a judgment on the opposition’s petition within 14 days, as stipulated by the Constitution. This is the period before the president-elect is inaugurated. The court would have sparked a constitutional crisis if it had not made any decision.
But by not explaining how the IEBC has failed, the court has created a problem. It’s impossible to organise the next election and reform the commission in the time given.
<h2>Time pressure</h2>
The court gave itself up to 21 more days to deliver its full judgment. This would leave the country with only 39 days before the fresh election. Already, opposition leader Raila Odinga has declared that his coalition will refuse to participate in presidential elections under the current leadership of the IEBC.
But, as a newspaper commentator observes, it’s just not feasible to remove IEBC commissioners without a tribunal, which is then reviewed by parliament. Complicating matters further, three citizens have filed a separate petition to ask the courts to remove certain IEBC officials over their wrongdoing.
Even once the full judgment is handed down within 21 days of the ruling, it probably won’t indicate criminality at the level of individuals. The Supreme Court was asked only to determine the validity of the election overall. Its full judgment can indicate how the process of the election must be improved.
The election was judged to be void because the electoral commission was at fault. This suggests it must change its procedures – and perhaps its personnel – if better elections are to take place. A new election must avoid the errors of the previous one.
Political scholar Gabrielle Lynch explains some of the corrections that have to be made. These include the process for transmitting results, the use of security forces and the uneven use of state resources.
Few of these suggested corrections will be feasible within the allotted timeframe.
<h2>Serious problems</h2>
Indeed, the problems are serious. Months before the election was held, the courts ordered the IEBC to stop printing ballot papers, because ofclaims that the Dubai-based firm Ghurair held too many links to Kenyatta.
The claim against Ghurair was dismissed due to insufficient evidence. But part of the IEBC’s successful defence against the court order was the time pressure of having to hold an election in a few months’ time. If time pressure was a valid reason then, why would it not be now? Why would an even more rushed election be credible?
The murder of the IEBC’s IT manager, Chris Msando, will now be under even closer scrutiny by the media. But even if the crime was directly related to the muddled tallying of votes, there isn’t time before the rerun to find individuals guilty. It is highly unlikely the full Supreme Court judgment will touch upon this tense topic. And that further reduces the credibility of the current IEBC.
<h2>Credibility concerns</h2>
The wider concerns with the IEBC date back to the “Chickengate” scandal. A UK court found a UK firm had bribed the IEBC (then the Interim Independent Electoral Commission) to get the contract to print ballot papers for the 2010 Kenyan constitutional referendum.
The UK co-conspirators were found guilty. But no-one from the Kenyan side was put behind bars by Kenyan courts. This created mistrust of the IEBC leaders. The current crisis will revive past anxieties like these, but leave no time for meaningful reform.
In Kenyan elections, local witnesses must sign the official forms to say the local tally is accurate. Central tallying organised electronically must then match with these local forms. The election is considered free and fair if this is done properly. The Supreme Court has ruled that both the IEBC as a whole and its chairperson, Wafula Chebukati, are responsible for the failure on 8 August.
Chebukati has refused to stand down. His response doesn’t boost public confidence in the institution. If the public is to trust the rerun, he must go.
<h2>Asking for more time</h2>
The IEBC should then petition the Supreme Court to give it more time.
It was done before, when the 2013 election was delayed because of the difficulty of implementing aspects of the new Constitution.
Section 86 of the Constitution requires the IEBC to collate the results of an election openly and accurately. At present, it can’t meet this requirement because it does not know what it must do differently from before. The IEBC should therefore depend on Section 86 when it asks the Supreme Court for more time.
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This article was first published in The Conversation.

Kenya’s Supreme Court has given an impossible deadline for the repeat election

Kenya’s election commission on Monday set Oct. 17 as the date for a new vote ordered by the Supreme Court when it annulled an August poll won by President Uhuru Kenyatta.
The election will feature Kenyatta who is running for a second term and opposition leader Raila Odinga, the commission said.
A presidential spokesman said the government will not replace the election board ahead of the election, setting up a potential showdown between the government and the opposition.
Kenyatta won the Aug. 8 vote by 1.4 million votes. The court on Friday said the election commission had not followed proper procedures and ordered it to hold a new vote within 60 days. It did not stipulate any personnel changes.
Kenya’s election commission on Monday set Oct. 17 as the date for a new vote ordered by the Supreme Court when it annulled an August poll won by President Uhuru Kenyatta.
The election will feature Kenyatta who is running for a second term and opposition leader Raila Odinga, the commission said.
A presidential spokesman said the government will not replace the election board ahead of the election, setting up a potential showdown between the government and the opposition.
Kenyatta won the Aug. 8 vote by 1.4 million votes. The court on Friday said the election commission had not followed proper procedures and ordered it to hold a new vote within 60 days. It did not stipulate any personnel changes.
Spokesmen for Kenyatta and the election board rejected a change to the entire board.
“The Supreme Court gave clear guidance on who will hold the repeat election. You cannot accept one half of the verdict of the Supreme Court and not the other,” said presidential spokesman Manoah Esipisu.
Andrew Limo, a spokesman for the electoral board, said the situation was complicated by the fact that the court would not release its full verdict until Sept. 21.
Judges read short remarks criticizing the process but did not go into detail, saying they needed more time to consider more than 80,000 pages submitted as evidence.
“If you want to punish people, you must have a basis for it. But the only basis is the full judgment of the Supreme Court, which will not be out until 21 days,” Limo said.
“Otherwise the commission could get into a position of defending itself in court from people who were dismissed.”
Odinga’s spokesman was not immediately available to comment.
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Editing by George Obulutsa and Matthew Mpoke Bigg
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Kenyan election commission sets Oct. 17 as date for new vote

Kenya’s government will not replace the election board ahead of the new elections ordered by the Supreme Court, a presidential spokesman said on Monday, indicating a looming showdown with the opposition.
On Friday, the court annulled President Uhuru Kenyatta’s official win in the Aug. 8 presidential polls by 1.4 million votes. The court said the board had not followed proper procedures and ordered it to hold new elections within 60 days, but did not stipulate any personnel changes.
Some Kenyans celebrated the ruling, saying it reduced the potential for a repeat of the kind of violence that followed a disputed 2007 presidential election, in which more than 1,200 people were killed.
Opposition leader Raila Odinga, who has lost the last three elections and has alleged vote-rigging after each, was among those who welcomed the court judgement. But he also called for senior officials at the election board to resign and face possible prosecution.
Spokesmen for both the president and the election board rejected the idea of changing the entire board.
“The Supreme Court gave clear guidance on who will hold the repeat election. You cannot accept one half of the verdict of the Supreme Court and not the other,” said presidential spokesman Manoah Esipisu.
Andrew Limo, a spokesman for the electoral board, said the situation was complicated by the fact that the court would not release its full verdict until Sept. 21.
Judges on Friday read short remarks criticising the process but did not go into detail, saying they needed more time to consider more than 80,000 pages submitted as evidence.
“If you want to punish people, you must have a basis for it. But the only basis is the full judgement of the Supreme Court, which will not be out until 21 days,” Limo said.
“Otherwise the commission could get into a position of defending itself in court from people who were dismissed.”
Odinga’s spokesman was not immediately available to comment.
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Editing by Andrew Roche
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Showdown looms between Kenya opposition, ruling party over election board

Kenya’s Supreme Court ruling to scrap last month’s presidential election was shaped by a new chief justice who proved a staunch defender of judicial independence on a continent where judges are often seen as being under the thumb of executive powers.
David Maraga’s declaration that the Aug. 8 election was void and demand for a new poll with 60 days shocked many in the East African nation and abroad.
But his announcement, after a 4-2 vote by a court panel to annul the vote, didn’t surprise those who know the chief justice.
“We knew this case was coming and he was the man to hear it,” Professor Tom Ojienda, who worked with Maraga and sits on the Judicial Service Commission that appointed him chief justice, told Reuters. “He is a stickler for the rules.”
President Uhuru Kenyatta, who was expected to be sworn in for a second term until Friday’s Supreme Court ruling, said he respected the decision. But he took a swipe at Maraga’s colleagues, calling them “crooks” and saying the judiciary needed fixing.
Kenya, a U.S. ally in the fight against Islamists and a trade gateway to East Africa, has a history of disputed votes. A row after the 2007 vote led to ethnic bloodshed that killed more than 1,200 people. In 2013, a bid by veteran opponent Raila Odinga to secure an election rerun was rejected by the Supreme Court.
This time, the opposition changed tack in their petition. Instead of seeking to prove enough votes were fake to undermine the vote &#8211; an almost impossible task in the two weeks the court had to give its judgement &#8211; Odinga’s supporters sought to demonstrate that the online tallying process lacked integrity.
The new approach may have been a key factor in securing a decision that had the backing of four of the panel’s six judges, who have three weeks from the ruling to publish details of their decision.
But the opposition also found in the chief justice a man ready to defend judicial powers against the highest office and unswayed by a tendency in Kenya, a nation of more than 40 ethnic groups, for voters to back fellow clans people.
Within months of his appointment in October, Maraga called out Kenyatta for telling voters on a campaign stop in Maraga’s home region of Nyamira County in April that “their son” had a job. Maraga responded that his appointment had nothing to do with the president.
Kenyatta is a Kikuyu, Kenya’s biggest ethnic group but still a minority. Odinga is a Luo, another big grouping. The chief justice is Kisii, a smaller group from Kenya’s western highlands.
Maraga also sent a clear message to national leaders on Aug. 2 that the judiciary was above the political fray.
“A LITTLE SOMETHING”
“The emerging culture of public lynching of judges and judicial officers by the political class is a vile affront to the rule of law and must be fiercely resisted,” he said in a statement.
Maraga did not immediately issue a response to Kenyatta’s latest comments. Reuters could not reach him for comment.
Kenyans have long complained that getting any official business done requires a “kitu kidogo”, Swahili for “a little something” or bribe, a frustration that is echoed across Africa.
But Kenya has slowly rebuilt confidence in its judiciary after the post-2007 vote violence. A new constitution in 2010 demanded reforms of the judiciary and other public institutions.
Maraga, who has risen the ranks as those reforms have been implement, was known by colleagues for his strict adherence to the rules even as a young lawyer.
A devout Christian of the Seventh Day Adventist tradition, he built his practice in the Rift Valley city of Nakuru rather than to Nairobi where he where he could have secured more high profile cases and would have more easily rubbed shoulders with the rich and powerful, his colleagues said.
“If a client gave you any problem, or asked for anything that was wrong, or refused to pay, (Maraga) would just say, ‘Let him go. Other ones will come’,” said Professor Ojienda said.
Maraga’s integrity and record of strictly interpreting election procedures in past polls swayed the commission to appoint him last October, Ojienda said.
The opposition’s high hopes in 2013 that it could overturn that election result were dashed. Supreme Court judges, then led by Maraga’s predecessor Willy Mutunga, rejected their petition.
This time, even Odinga &#8211; a former prime minister who has fought and lost three presidential races including this one &#8211; seemed surprised. After listening to Friday’s ruling in court, he broke out into a broad grin and pumped his fist in the air.
Since 2013, several new judges were appointed to the Supreme Court’s seven-strong panel. Friday’s decision was backed by Maraga and two others appointed after 2013. Another, who had been on the panel in 2013, also backed the ruling. Two judges dissented, while one was ill and did not vote.
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“An election is not an event, it is a process from the beginning to the end,” Maraga said before reading the ruling.
Four years earlier, the opposition had some of their arguments thrown out as they were lodged too late, while their complaints about the widespread failure of the electronic voting systems failed to convince the judges.
This time, the opposition case hinged on the election board’s failure to post online tally forms from each of the 40,883 polling stations before announcing results.
The forms were supposed to be signed by each party’s agent, as a hard-copy backup to the electronic transmission. But thousands of forms were missing from the board’s website when it announced results. A report by independent court-appointed experts found many forms lacked official stamps, signatures or serial numbers.
That was enough to convince a majority in Maraga’s panel.

Vote ruling by chief justice surprises Kenyans, but not his colleagues

Kenya’s shares and dollar bonds plummeted on Friday while its shilling currency fell after the country’s Supreme Court declared President Uhuru Kenyatta’s election win invalid.
Analysts said the ruling signalled new uncertainty for East Africa’s most developed economy. Another vote must be held within 60 days, according to the constitution.
In Nairobi, stocks fell sharply before recovering some ground, and trading in the shilling followed a similar pattern.
In London one Africa economist, John Ashbourne at Capital Economics, cited the risk of a violent reaction.
However, a lawyer for Kenyatta, Ahmednasir Abdullahi, said the court’s decision had to be respected. “Let’s go back to the people and (they) &#8230;will express themselves again,” he said.
There were also no signs of tension in Kenyatta’s ethnic strongholds, while supporters of opposition leader Raila Odinga celebrated peacefully in the streets in areas that had voted for him.
The stock exchange halted trading briefly midway through the session after blue chip shares plummeted.
Trading restarted at 1000 GMT, exchange chief executive Geoffrey Odundo told Reuters. He said shares had fallen by the maximum daily limit of 10 percent, which requires a trading halt.
Real time data is usually not available for the market apart from for individual stocks.
Telecoms operator Safaricom SCOM.NR, the biggest company by market value, fell 4.9 percent to trade at 24.00 shillings ($0.2328) per share, traders said.
“No one likes uncertainty especially if the uncertainty period is as long as 60 days,” said Ken Minjire, head of securities at Nairobi-based Genghis Capital.
The shilling partly recovered after an early slump to trade at 103.10/20 per dollar, down around 0.4 percent from Thursday’s close of 102.75/95.
Kenya’s $2 billion sovereign bond maturing in 2024 fell 1.33 cents, according to Tradeweb data, its lowest since mid-August. The 2019 issue fell 0.75 cents to 102.75 cents.
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Kenya’s average yield premium over Treasuries blew out 25 basis points (bps) on the EMBI Global Diversified index to 411 bps. The underlying emerging debt index was unchanged.
“People will be looking at the tone the president takes,” Ashbourne added.
Kenya has a history of disputed elections. A row over the 2007 poll, in which Odinga also lost out, was followed by weeks of ethnic bloodshed in which more than 1,200 were killed.
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Additional reporting by Alexander Winning and John Ndiso; editing by John Stonestreet
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Kenyan assets drop after court declares election result invalid

Faith Kiboro | SMC University
A few hours after Kenya’s polling stations closed on Tuesday August 8th, the country’s Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission began transmitting live results.
But even before it had a chance to complete the tallying process, the opposition candidate Raila Odinga and his National Super Alliance (NASA) disputed the credibility and fairness of the process, claiming that they had garnered 8.04 million votes against Uhuru Kenyatta’s 7.7 million.
These results differed widely from the official electoral figures which on Friday placed Kenyatta in the lead with 8.1 million votes, and Odinga in second place with 6.7 million.
History seems to be on the side of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission: international observers – of which there were 400 at various stations on polling day – have by and large come out to say that the process was credible.
If we take the practice of democracy as playing the game and abiding by the rules, then for Kenya the game is far from over.
In the end, the final judgement could be made by the country’s courts. The rules governing elections in Kenya are set down in the constitutionwhich states that a candidate will be declared president if he or she has received more than half of all the votes cast in the election, and that at least 25% of the votes cast in each of more than half of the counties.
If indeed there is an election petition, both sides are heavily invested in the outcome. For Odinga it is do or die. He has unsuccessfully contested for the top seat three times. However, despite this being his last shot, he has maintained that legal recourse is not an option.
The future of his running mate Kalonzo Musyoka is also uncertain – results show that some of the candidates vying for gubernatorial seats on his Wiper party ticket were unsuccessful, thereby lowering his political party’s future value proposition.
For Kenyatta and Deputy President William Ruto the marriage of convenience is under pressure to continue for another five years to pave the way for Ruto’s succession.
<h2>Things that stood out</h2>
Despite the fears of post-election violence there was a lot of goodwill for this election to be a success. Campaigns for a “tribeless Kenya” and various activities that promoted peaceful elections were a part of the pre-poll fabric.
While there were multiple reports predicting violence, there was relative calm after voters had gone to the polls. And for the most part Kenyans have so far affirmed that no blood needs to be shed.
But there has been violence. Kenyans in low-income areas been caught up in deadly clashes with the police.
These incidents have been localised to opposition areas and the majority of Kenyans seem eager to return to normalcy. This resolve is being tested by the opposition alliance which announced on Sunday that it was preparing a post-election strategy. Many fear that this could heighten tensions further.
The election, and its aftermath, provide an opportunity for Kenya to reflect on how the electoral process went and how, in the future, it can deal with complaints and inconsistencies better.
But there have been many positive reports on the election process. These, combined with what observers say was largely a free and fair election, have increased international confidence in Kenya’s election processes.
<h2>What was memorable</h2>
What will the 2017 election be remembered for?
The road to Canaan: The 2017 election was an incumbent election with polls consistently showing an incumbent win for Kenyatta. Nevertheless, the opposition colourfully portrayed their campaign as the Road to Canaan, with Joshua (their flag bearer Odinga) leading them to the Promised Land full of milk and honey. The biblical story of Joshua is of a military commander who takes the mantle from Moses. His mission is to take the Israelite tribes to the land of Canaan after 40 years of wandering. The story of Canaan is one of hope and the message resonated with many Kenyans.
The year of the independent candidate: Legislation that put a definitive end to party hopping after the party nomination process gave rise to the “big two” National Super Alliance and Jubilee Party coalitions.
In my opinion this legislation changed Kenya’s political landscape because smaller parties were swallowed up by the big coalitions. Many who tried to secure nominations from the Jubilee Party and National Super Alliance failed. They were therefore left no option but to stand as independent candidates if they wanted to keep alive their dreams of running for office.
But the election results have shown that the independent movement failed to get off the ground. By and large Kenyans favoured candidates from one of the big two coalitions. Only two counties – Isiolo and Laikipia – went against this trend, electing independent candidates as their next governors.
More women elected: In terms of gender representation, there’s a lot to be encouraged by, not least the fact that the first women governors were elected. The council of governors had previously been a male preserve. The number of women in elected seats also rose from 16 in 2013 to 22 in this election.
Leaders who work: The election results also showed the reduction in appetite for leaders who don’t deliver. This was clear from the number of incumbents who were unsuccessful in their bids to return to their posts.
In the end, election days come and go. The next phase is all that matters now. The intense electoral competition and the choices people made show that there is enough room for all Kenyans to participate – whether they belong to a big party or not – and to do so in a meaningful way.
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This article was published on The Conversation.

Kenya’s election: the good, the bad and the memorable moments

Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga said on Wednesday he would challenge last week&#8217;s presidential election result in court, calming fears that further street protests by his supporters might lead to widespread violence.
At least 24 people have been killed since the Aug. 8 vote, many of them shot by police. But while there have been scattered protests in Odinga strongholds, the demonstrations were relatively muted as supporters waited to hear what Odinga had to say.
When Odinga, a 72-year-old former political prisoner, called a news conference after days of public silence, crowds clustered around televisions and radios in the slums, falling silent as he began to speak.
&#8220;We have now decided to move to the Supreme Court,&#8221; Odinga told a bank of television cameras in the capital Nairobi. &#8220;This is just the beginning, we will not accept and move on.&#8221;
The election board said on Friday Kenyatta had beaten Odinga by 1.4 million votes to win a second five-year term. Odinga disputes that figure but has not yet provided proof of rigging.
The move to the judiciary will relieve Kenyans who feared a repeat of the violence that followed the flawed 2007 vote, when Odinga called for protests which led to a police crackdown and ethnic violence. Around 1,200 people died.
<h3 data-reactid="41">SEARCHING FOR JUSTICE</h3>
Odinga also contested &#8211; and officially lost &#8211; the 2013 election but quelled potential violence by taking his case to court. Judges ruled that much of his evidence was submitted outside time limits set by the court, which raised suspicion among his supporters of the judiciary&#8217;s independence.
Odinga acknowledged those frustrations, even as he backtracked on earlier opposition statements that going to court was not an option.
&#8220;Our decision to go to court constitutes a second chance for the Supreme Court. The court can use this chance to redeem itself,&#8221; he said.
His announcement follows days of intense behind-the-scenes negotiations, with diplomats urging him not to call for protests. International and domestic observers have said the polls were largely free and fair.
Odinga has accused observers of supporting the government, but an international official who has been in contact with both sides in recent days said Odinga has struggled in talks to clearly make his case for fraud.
Another international observer said Odinga&#8217;s team had identified 11 polling stations where the opposition had proof of problems &#8211; far too few to overturn the results.
Odinga did not detail such allegations in his speech. Instead, he repeated accusations of police brutality, naming a baby and a young girl whose families say were killed by police during a crackdown on his supporters on Saturday.
&#8220;By going to court we are not legitimizing misplaced calls from some observers for us to concede. We are seeking to give to those who braved the long lines in the morning chill and hot afternoon &#8230; a chance to be heard,&#8221; Odinga said.
Reaction to his decision was mixed, but in the Kibera slum, Nairobi&#8217;s largest, many expressed relief that they could get back to work.
&#8220;This decision to go to court is good. If they had not said that and told people to go back to the streets that would not have helped us,&#8221; said George Ouma, 28, a minibus driver. &#8220;Whatever the decision the court makes, that will be fine.&#8221;
In Mathare slum, Zipporah Otieno, 52, said: &#8220;Court has never brought us good results &#8230; It&#8217;s better for us to be on the road demonstrating than have our rights taken from us.&#8221;
<h3 data-reactid="71">MISSING FORMS</h3>
Earlier on Wednesday, the European Union observer mission, which has broadly praised the vote so far, urged the election commission to publish all remaining forms showing vote tallies on its website to ensure transparency.
Each individual polling station should have a form detailing the votes for each candidate, signed by all party observers. But Andrew Limo, an election commission spokesman, said about 2,900 of the 41,000 forms showing results at individual polling stations were not yet online.
&#8220;The timing of such information being made public is critical given that petitions relating to the presidential race must be filed within seven days of the results announcement,&#8221; the EU mission said in a statement.
Any challenge must be filed by the evening of Aug. 18.
The EU also criticized a government crackdown against a rights group and a pro-democracy organization that had publicly questioned preparations by the electoral board.
Police and tax authorities on Wednesday raided the Africa Centre for Open Governance, and on Monday issued a letter threatening to shut down the Kenya Human Rights Commission over administrative and tax issues.
Amid an outcry from the United Nations and international rights groups, the Interior Ministry later announced it was suspending the crackdown.
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additional reporting by George Obulutsa, Katharine Houreld and Maggie Fick; Writing by Katharine Houreld; Editing by Janet Lawrence
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Kenya opposition leader will go to Supreme Court over disputed elections

The head of the European Union&#8217;s election observer mission in Kenya said on Thursday it had seen no signs of &#8220;centralised or localised manipulation&#8221; of the voting process.
Marietje Schaake said that the EU mission&#8217;s final report would evaluate the conduct of the tallying process, which opposition leader Raila Odinga said had been compromised by hackers.
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Reporting by Ed Cropley; Writing by David Lewis
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Kenya Election

Broadcasters shut as thousands gather for Kenyan opposition ‘swearing in’

Hundreds of Kenyan opposition supporters gather for “swearing in” of Raila Odinga

Kenya’s Supreme Court upholds repeat presidential vote

Kenya court to rule on presidential election cases on Monday

Petition filed at Kenya’s Supreme Court challenging election results

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Kenyan shilling falls to lowest since mid-August on election jitters

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Kenya High Court rules minor candidate should be on ballot for poll re-run

Kenya’s Supreme Court has given an impossible deadline for the repeat election

Kenyan election commission sets Oct. 17 as date for new vote

Showdown looms between Kenya opposition, ruling party over election board

Vote ruling by chief justice surprises Kenyans, but not his colleagues

Kenyan assets drop after court declares election result invalid

Kenya’s election: the good, the bad and the memorable moments

Kenya opposition leader will go to Supreme Court over disputed elections

No signs of manipulation of Kenya vote: EU observers

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