Registrar of Political Parties Ann Nderitu confirmed that forty-six presidential aspirants have been cleared to “run as independents” in the Kenyan general elections set to hold on August 9.
The 46 cleared candidates were among the over 7,212 independents who expressed interest to vie for the office of the president in Kenya.
Independent aspirants refer to persons who have proved to the electoral body that they do not belong to any registered political party in Kenya.
The names of the successful candidates have since been submitted to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) for the final clearance ahead of August 9.
The registrar of political parties, Ann Nderitu, noted that the upsurge was due to the massive awareness created ahead of the elections, compared to what was obtainable in the past polls.
In 2017, 4,000 independent candidates were recorded.
Some of the 2022 cleared candidates include US-based professor, Japheth Kaluyu, son of late former minister Joe Nyaga, Jeremiah John Mwaniki Nyaga, amongst others.
Political analyst Kevin Kegoli, described the increase in the number of independent candidates as a growth in the Kenyan democracy.
“This shows Kenyan democracy is growing. Any qualified Kenyan can vie for any position,” he said. He however, expressed doubt that any of them would be able to stand against “the big two political heavyweights:” Azimio la Umoja candidate Raila Odinga and Kenya Kwanza’s William Ruto.
The aspirants all applied online.
Reports have it that another 7,111 Kenyans have applied to run as independents in “various elective positions, such as governors, senators and members of parliament.”
Political parties have since registered their displeasure over the development, stating that independents will not be allowed to share in their support base.
