Kenyans participate in fractious repeat polls

By Magdalene Mukami and Andrew Wasike

NAIROBI, Kenya (AA) – Kenyans headed to the polls on Thursday in a presidential election rerun that has been boycotted by the main opposition leader.

By 6 am local time (0300 GMT), when polls opened, many Kenyans were already waiting in queues to participate in the voting process. Many expected long lines but the voter turnout across the country was very low.

This could be because for the first time the opposition led by Raila Odinga, which has an almost equal following to the ruling party has boycotted the election.

Odinga withdrew from the elections, leaving the current President Uhuru Kenyatta to run almost unopposed with many saying that he will receive a definite win.

This September, the top court of the country annulled the Aug. 8 presidential elections citing irregularities in the poll.

In the ruling party strongholds, voters braced the morning cold queuing to vote for their preferred candidates.

In opposition strongholds in Nairobi and Kisumu, lots of teargas canisters have been fired since polls opened to disperse protesters who came out in large numbers to disrupt the election process.

The atmosphere is very tense in these areas despite heavy police presence. Angry youths could be seen blocking roads, burning tires, and shouting slogans against the ruling party.

An electoral official from Kisumu county who spoke to Anadolu Agency on condition of anonymity said: “We were not able to move voting material in time. The presiding officers were very few across the 127 polling stations in Kisumu. Many have stayed away from work due to fear for their lives. We expected this because these are opposition strongholds.”

Across the country, the situation was similar with many voters not turning up in areas where the opposition and the ruling party supporters live side by side.

A resident from Mathare slums, an opposition and ruling party stronghold, told Anadolu Agency on condition of anonymity: “I came here and queued with the others. They [police] lobbed teargas at us after opposition supporters came here and tried to attack us, throwing stones at us. Now we are back but many have run away in fear.”

The presidential race in Kenya is based on tribal politics. This time Kenyans had the option to choose between Kenyatta, the son of Kenya’s first president and founding father Jomo Kenyatta, and Odinga, the son of Kenya’s first vice president, Oginga Odinga who are both from different but major Kenyan tribes.

Out of 19 million registered voters in Kenya, only half are taking part in the voting process as opposition supporters follow Odinga’s call to boycott.

Odinga on Wednesday declared his opposition party has become a "resistance movement" which will unseat “dictators” who are violating the Kenyan Constitution by clinging to power by force.