Provisional results point to a tight Uhuru-Raila finish in historic race

By NATION TEAM newsdesk@ke.nationmedia.com  ( email the author)

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Jubilee coalition presidential candidate Uhuru Kenyatta took an early lead as provisional results began trickling in moments after voting closed in several polling centres around the country.

As at 8.30pm, Mr Kenyatta was keeping a 57 per cent lead with provisional results from about 3,196 polling centres out of the 31,981 stations.

Outgoing Prime Minister Raila Odinga, who is the presidential flag bearer of the Coalition for Reforms and Democracy, had garnered 38.7 per cent of the vote with less than a million votes counted by press time last night.

Mr Kenyatta had garnered 484,445 votes while Mr Odinga had 326,911  after 887,544 votes had been tallied. Amani coalition presidential candidate Musalia Mudavadi was a distant third with 19,223 votes. Some 43,104 votes had been rejected by the time.

The Jubilee leader appeared to be commanding a wide lead over Mr Odinga in most counties of the Rift Valley and Central Province while the latter appeared to be ahead in counties in Western, Nyanza and Coast provinces.

Mr Kenyatta scored over 80 per cent in many Rift Valley polling centres where results had been counted, while Mr Odinga’s score at the Coast stood at above 70 per cent with strong show in Western.

Of the few counties whose results had been dispatched to the national tallying centre at the Bomas of Kenya in Nairobi, Mr Kenyatta was widely leading in Tharaka Nithi, Nyeri, Meru, Kiambu, Uasin Gishu, Bomet, Baringo, Nandi, and Isiolo counties.

On his part, Mr Odinga appeared in control of Migori, Kisii, Nyamira, Tana River, Siaya, Mombasa, Kilifi,Lamu, Taveta, Samburu, Narok and Kajiado counties.

There were indications of tight battle in Kakamega and Vihiga between Mr Odinga  and Mr Mudavadi and in Garisa and Marsabit between the Cord leader and Mr Kenyatta.

Overall, Mr Mudavadi was doing well in Vihiga County, while Bungoma appeared to be going for Mr Odinga.

Mr Peter Kenneth of the Kenya National Congress was neck-and-neck with Prof James ole Kiyiapi of Restore and Build Kenya.

The elections were marked with a high voter turn-out, incidents of violence in some parts and a voter identification hitch.

Long queues formed outside most of the 31,981 polling stations, while in some cases patients were wheeled from hospitals to take part in the historic elections held two-and-half years since the promulgation of the new Constitution.

Mr Odinga voted at Old Kibera Primary School in Nairobi, while Mr Kenyatta at Mutomo Primary School in his Gatundu backyard.

Mr Mudavadi cast his ballot at Mululu Primary School in Sabatia and Mr Kenneth voted at Kirwara Primary School in Gatanga.

Prof Kiyiapi voted at Osupuko Primary School in Kilgoris as Narc Kenya’s Martha Karua cast her vote at Mugumo Primary School in Gichugu, and Mohamed Dida (ARK) was at Visa Oshwal Primary School in Nairobi.

Mr Paul Muite of Safina voted at Kikuyu Township Primary School in Kabete.

Perhaps inspired by the heightened campaigns for the six elective positions, Kenyans came out in their millions with long queues still forming even after the IEBC’s voting closure time of 5pm.

The commission chief executive officer James Oswago announced that voters who would still be on the queue at 5pm will be allowed to vote while polling stations which opened late will extend the exercise by the same margin of delay.

At the Coast, the government deployed contingents of Kenya Defence Forces to bolster security after nine policemen were hacked to death on Sunday night.

The simultaneous raids in parts of Mombasa, Kilifi and Kwale counties also left 10 raiders and three residents dead. Both attacks have been linked to the Mombasa Republican Council (MRC), a group opposed to the elections and which has also been advocating secession of the region.

Assorted paraphernalia bearing the group’s secessionist slogans were found at the scene of the attacks, police said.

In Mombasa, four policemen were killed in a confrontation with more than 100 raiders who had attacked a polling station in Miritini.

The officers who were hacked to death were Changamwe police boss Otieno Owuor, OCS Salim Chebii and inspectors Charles Maithya and Edward Songwa. Seven raiders were killed in the raid and a number of gangsters arrested.

In Nairobi, two people were arrested for impersonation while one person was injured at Bula Mpya Primary School and Bula Jamuhuria in Mandera County.

The commission was forced to resort to manual registers after the electronic voter identifications kits failed in some polling stations countrywide.

Mr Oswago attributed the failure to power shortages, inability of polling clerks to remember passwords, in-built security systems which were not decoded on time and training of clerks using different machines.

“The problem was not the BVR. The challenges today were exclusively related to poll books. The poll books came with a security card inside the laptops which was to be activated first,” he said as he assured Kenyans that the printed lists would do the job equally well.

Repeat polls were ordered for four county assembly wards in Nyabasi West and Goke Haraka wards of Kuria East district and Bunyala South, Gwasi North and Samburu North constituencies due to ballot paper errors. They will be held on March 11.

In Kitui, a polling clerk was arrested for issuing a voter with more than one ballot paper.

— Reports by Isaac Ongiri, Dave Opiyo, Bernard Namunane, Philip Onyango and Marete Gitonga