Odinga Calls Kenyan Election 'Null & Void', But Little Unrest Recorded

Defeated Kenyan presidential candidate Railia Odinga has called the declaration of the final result in the contest yesterday 'null and void' in a speech that indicated east Africa's largest economy could be heading for a period of sustained political uncertainty.

• Odinga: “What we saw yesterday was a travesty and blatant disregard of the constitution,” and stated that he would contest the declared result by "all legal options".
• This raises the risk that declared winner, President-Elect William Ruto, faces major opposition to the start of his presidency, or a lengthy court process that could end in the reversal of the result or even a repeat of the presidential election.
• The electoral commission stated yesterday that former Deputy President Ruto had defeated former PM Odinga by 50.5% of the vote to 48.9%. However, a number of senior commission members resigned before the announcement, citing the 'opaque' way in which the believe the count was conducted.
• Despite the disputed nature of the election, widespread political violence has not been recorded so far. As of 16 August, only two deaths have been recorded due to post-election violence, compared to 200 killed in 2017 and 1,500 following the 2007 election.