Machakos Deputy Governor Francis Mwangangi has urged the incoming leadership of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) to fully integrate technology into the electoral process. He emphasized that digitizing voter registration, voting, and results transmission would enhance transparency, accountability, and efficiency in Kenya’s elections.
Mwangangi noted that several countries worldwide have successfully implemented digital election systems, allowing them to deliver swift and credible results. He pointed out that Kenya could achieve similar efficiency if the IEBC embraced an aggressive digital transformation.
“In many parts of the world, voters cast their ballots in the morning, and results are announced by evening. Kenya can take up this challenge and achieve the same if we are focused on ensuring fairness in the election process,” Mwangangi said in an interview with The Star.
He urged the next IEBC chairperson and commissioners to adopt innovative solutions that will ensure the credibility of elections. “The priority of the next IEBC should be delivering credible, free, fair, and transparent elections in a timely manner by embracing technology. This will eliminate suspicions and restore public confidence,” he stated.
The process of selecting the next IEBC leadership is currently underway, with interviews for the chairperson concluding on March 26 and those for commission members set to end by April 24. Kenya’s election process still involves manual components, as the law mandates a physical verification process for voter registration, voting, counting, and tallying. While results transmission is digital, returning officers must verify physical forms, slowing down the announcement of presidential results, which can take a week or longer.
Mwangangi, an expert in international relations, stressed that achieving a fully digitized election system requires strong leadership from the IEBC. “The incoming commissioners must prioritize digitizing the election process to ensure a fair and just system that upholds the will of Kenyans,” he said.
He further called on the new IEBC team to collaborate with stakeholders, learn from past challenges, and uphold constitutional provisions to maintain electoral integrity. “We have faced challenges in the past, but this time, the commissioners must fulfill their mandate to deliver a free and credible election,” he concluded.
