The Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) has announced that its grassroots elections will commence in April 2025, marking a crucial step in strengthening the party’s leadership structures ahead of the next general elections.
According to a notice published in Thursday’s dailies, the elections follow the successful polling unit elections conducted on November 27, 2024. The National Elections Coordinating Committee (NECC) has scheduled the sub-branch (Ward) elections for Monday, April 7, while the branch (Constituency) elections will take place on Wednesday, April 9. These elections will be held at designated centers across the country’s 47 counties and 290 constituencies, respectively.
A total of 77 officials will be elected at both the sub-branch and branch levels across four key committees: mainstream, women’s league, youth league, and disability league.
Mainstream leadership positions to be contested include chairperson, deputy chairperson, secretary, deputy secretary, treasurer, deputy treasurer, organizing secretary, and deputy organizing secretary. Additional roles include secretaries for women, youth, and disability, as well as a representative for special interest groups. Each committee will also have eight additional members.
The leagues will elect officials to the positions of chairperson, deputy chairperson, secretary, deputy secretary, treasurer, deputy treasurer, organizing secretary, deputy organizing secretary, and 11 additional committee members.
Elections will be conducted either through consensus or by a show of hands, with voting taking place between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. on the respective dates. Only delegates elected at the polling unit level and who have paid a Sh100 fee will be eligible to participate.
Eligible delegates can apply for sub-branch elections via the party app or USSD 483036#, with applications opening on March 20 and closing on March 31, 2025. Fees for aspirants vary, with sub-branch candidates paying between Sh200 and Sh500, while branch-level candidates will pay from Sh500 to Sh5,000, depending on the position sought. Payments must be made via ODM Paybill No. 985900.
After the elections, presiding officers will announce results, upload them to the party app, and hand over results templates to the returning officer. Disputes can be filed within 12 hours, with fees set at Sh15,000 for sub-branch and Sh30,000 for branch elections.
ODM members are urged to verify their membership details via 483036# and refer to the party’s election handbook for further guidance.
