Kenya’s supreme court has annulled the result of the country’s presidential election today, declaring Uhuru Kenyatta’s victory invalid with fresh elections now due to be scheduled.
The decision from the country’s top court comes after a petition filed by opposition leader Raila Odinga, who claimed electronic voting results were hacked. He had originally been deemed to have obtained 44 percent of the vote to Mr Kenyatta’s 54 percent. The court ruled 4-2 in Mr Odinga’s favours, citing “illegalities and irregularities” by the electoral commission.
Mr Kenyatta said that he “personally disagrees” with the ruling telling his supporters that the judges were crooks and “six people have decided they will go against the will of the people”. However, he added that he will respect the decision of the court and called for “peace, peace, peace”. At least 28 people were killed in election-related violence following the original vote earlier this year.
The ruling is the first of its kind in the African continent, according to the Financial Times.
Though Mr Kenyatta had already been congratulated by many countries, including the United States, a joint statement from two dozen including the US said the decision “demonstrated Kenya’s resilient democracy and commitment to the rule of law.”
“All electoral processes can be improved, and we will continue to support Kenya’s institutions in this important work,” the statement added.
Also see more from the Guardian here and Washington Post here.
