Supreme Court to determine fate of 27 constituencies ahead of 2027 polls

The Supreme Court will on Monday rule on whether Kenya will have new constituencies in the 2027 elections, a decision that could reshape the country’s electoral boundaries amid a looming constitutional crisis.

The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) has sought an advisory from the apex court on whether it can conduct the delimitation of constituencies and ward boundaries, despite the process already having lapsed.

In its application to the Supreme Court, the IEBC seeks to know whether it can still review the names and boundaries of constituencies and wards after the timelines set under Articles 89(2) and 89(3) of the Constitution and Section 26 of the County Governments Act have expired.

It also seeks clarification on whether these timelines can be extended and, if so, by whom and under what circumstances.

Chief Justice Martha Koome and the seven-judge bench are expected to clarify whether the IEBC can proceed with the review in the absence of commissioners and whether the constitutional timelines for the exercise can be extended.

Constitutional expert Mohamed Abdikadir told Citizen TV that the IEBC must conduct the boundaries review, even though the commission has been operating without commissioners.

“You want to tell us if we don’t have commissioners until the elections, we cannot hold elections?” he asked.

“Even when we don’t have commissioners, we have the commission that should have done this.”

Lack of commissioners

The electoral body was required to complete the boundaries review by March 6, 2024, as stipulated in the Constitution. However, the lack of commissioners has hindered the process, pushing the country into a legal dilemma.

Legal experts argue that the Supreme Court’s advisory should not postpone the delimitation process but instead provide clarity on how to move forward.

“We are time bad… we are outside the timelines. What the Supreme Court should tell us is if the time can be extended,” Abdikadir said.

Environment Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale acknowledged the constitutional predicament and urged Parliament to also seek guidance on its role in resolving the crisis.

“Even if the time has lapsed, we have the Supreme Court, and we want that advisory, including what Parliament can do to ensure we have new constituencies,” he stated.

During the last boundaries review in 2012, the population quota for a constituency was set at 72,000 people. The upcoming review is expected to adjust this to 164,000.

Other Topics To Read

• National
• Supreme Court
• Chief Justice Martha Koome
• IEBC
• new constituencies
• electoral boundaries
• boundaries delamination
• Supreme Court to determine fate of 27 constituencies ahead of 2027 polls
• Headlines

New threshold

As a result, 27 constituencies that do not meet the new threshold risk being scrapped before the 2027 elections.

Abdikadir explained how the population quota is determined.

“We wanted, as framers, each constituency to be as close as possible. How do you get the population quota? You take 290 constituencies and divide them from the total population of the country,” he said.

According to the framework, constituencies in urban areas can exceed the target by up to 40 per cent, while those in remote regions are allowed a 40 per cent deviation below the threshold.

“For Nairobi, if the baseline is 100,000, then it is allowed to go up to 140,000 people. For North Horr, if the baseline is 100,000, then they are allowed to be at 60,000,” Abdikadir explained.

Under the guidelines, highly populated constituencies will be split, while those that fail to meet the population quota will either be merged or scrapped.

The Supreme Court’s ruling is expected to provide a way forward in addressing the electoral uncertainty ahead of the 2027 polls.