Raila Odinga files petition to challenge Kenyan election outcome

Kenyan presidential candidate Raila Odinga has filed an electronic copy of his challenge against the results of this month’s election, a lawyer for his Azimio La Umoja coalition has told a local broadcaster.

“What we did this morning is to file the online copy,” lawyer Daniel Maanzo told Kenyan television channel NTV Kenya on Monday. “After today there will be four days for the other parties to reply.”

The physical filing will be done later in the day in the capital, Nairobi.

Last week the electoral commission chief, Wafula Chebukati, declared Deputy President William Ruto the winner of the election by a slim margin. But four out of seven election commissioners dissented, saying the tallying of results had not been transparent.

This is Odinga’s fifth stab at the presidency; he blamed several previous losses on rigging. Those disputes triggered violence that claimed more than 1,200 lives in 2007 and over 100 lives 10 years later.

In 2017, the Supreme Court overturned the election result and ordered a rerun, which Odinga boycotted, saying he had no faith in the electoral commission.

This time, Odinga is backed by the political establishment. President Uhuru Kenyatta endorsed Odinga’s candidacy after falling out with Ruto after the last election.

The election in East Africa’s wealthiest and most stable nation is seen as a democratic barometer for the rest of the region.

The Supreme Court has 14 days from the date of the filing to hear the petition and give a verdict.

Source: Aljazeera