Kenya Supreme Court nullifies election, calls for new vote

[Tanuki]

https://www.wsj.com/amp/articles/kenya-supreme-court-nullifies-election-calls-for-new-vote-1504260050

Kenya’s supreme court on Friday annulled the country’s presidential election results and called for a new poll to be held within 60 days, a surprise ruling that plunged one of Africa’s top economies into a new period of uncertainty.

The bench ruled in favor of the petition filed by opposition candidate Raila Odinga, who claimed the electoral commission’s IT system had been hacked to manipulate the results. Kenya’s election commission had declared incumbent President Uhuru Kenyatta the winner of the poll, which was held peacefully and lauded by international observers.

The court judgment, which said the Aug. 8 election contained irregularities and wasn’t conducted in accordance with the constitution, marks the first presidential election to be annulled in Kenya’s history.
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A top election official in charge of new voting technology was murdered shortly before the vote, and the electronic transmission of ballots was flawed, leading the opposition to assert that as many as seven million votes had been stolen.

.......
“Our voice has been respected for the first time in the history of this country,” said George Ouama, a 45-year-old mechanic who supported Mr. Odinga. “The jubilee party have stolen elections before and now its high time we know the truth,” Mr. Ouama said, adding that he expected Mr. Odinga to win a rerun.".....(more)

[Paladin]

1. Here's hoping we catch up to Kenya, one of these days. (nt)

[COLGATE4]

2. Too bad the US isn't as advanced as Kenya in questions

of election hacking.