Kenya on edge as William Ruto declared winner of disputed presidential election
- Kenya’s elections chief declared William Ruto the winner of a tight presidential race, but some senior officials disowned the result
- Election outcome fuelled fears of widespread violence like that seen after previous disputed polls
Kenyans on Tuesday braced for a potentially turbulent time ahead after the disputed outcome of the country’s presidential election triggered violent protests in some areas.
After an anxious days-long wait for the results of the August 9 poll, Deputy President William Ruto was declared the winner, beating his rival Raila Odinga by a narrow margin after a largely peaceful voting process.
But the announcement did little to calm nerves, with the election commission itself split over the outcome and demonstrators in Odinga’s strongholds hurling stones and setting fire to tyres on Monday.
With the trauma of previous post-election violence still looming over Kenya, both Odinga and Ruto had previously pledged to deal with any disputes in court rather than on the streets.
But that did not stop supporters of 77-year-old Odinga – known by his nickname “Baba” (“father” in Swahili) – from packing the streets in his stamping ground in the lakeside city of Kisumu, where they clashed with police who fired tear gas to disperse them.
Protests also erupted on Monday in two Nairobi slums which have long been Odinga bastions.