Kenya begins voter registration for 2022 polls

By Andrew Wasike

NAIROBI, Kenya (AA) - Kenya’s election commission on Monday kicked off a 30-day voter registration exercise as it prepares to conduct Kenya’s 2022 general elections.

Speaking to the media in the Nakuru county where the exercise was launched, Wafula Chebukati, head of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), urged Kenyans to turn up in large numbers to get registered as the commission is targeting to register over 6 million new voters.

Across the country, new voters queued to get registered at many centers set up by the commission that also targets registering those Kenyans in the diaspora.

Khadar Safia, a 20-year-old student, told Anadolu Agency: “I am excited about this and hope I will get registered this time. Many young people are yet to receive their identity cards even after applying for them over two years ago. This mostly affects my tribe members from North Eastern Kenya, which Kenyan ethnic Somalis predominantly inhabit.”

Politicians have also complained about the slow process in issuing identity cards to Kenyans across the East African nation.

David Gikaria, a lawmaker from Nakuru county, told reporters: “It is very sad that you will find there are Kenyan parents who have identity cards, but their children have been denied the identity cards. We call on the government to vet and register all those who qualify without delay.”

In Kenya’s 2017 elections, IEBC records show that the country had over 19 million voters. According to official figures, the country has a population of over 53.7 million, with the majority being the youth.

Politicians in Kenya have taken to social platforms, urging their supporters to come out in large numbers to get registered to be able to vote in the 2022 elections.