Kenyans react as Supreme Court upholds Ruto's victory

Kenya's marathon election process has reached a conclusion after weeks of uncertainty, with the Supreme Court upholding William Ruto's victory in the August 9 vote.

Ruto's supporters reacted with song and dance following Monday's decision.

The president-elect is now set to be sworn in on September 13 to become Kenya's fifth president since independence in 1963.

"I'm so happy today, so happy," one supporter told DW in Nairobi. "William Ruto is a man who can work for Kenya. We're sure he's going to take the economy of Kenyato the next level."

The Supreme Court's verdict deals a blow to challenging candidate Raila Odinga, who alleged fraud in the voting process after losing by less than two percentage points in a tightly-fought race.

In previous elections, Odinga, a veteran politician, had claimed he was also cheated out of victory in the 2007, 2013 and 2017 presidential polls.

Shifting alliances

Odinga filed a petition against the poll outcome, with his lawyers presenting boxes of evidence to the court to defend their case.

According to governance expert Javas Bigambo, however, Odinga's lawyers simply didn't do enough to convince the judges, with Chief Justice Martha Koome — who led the seven-member bench — describing some of the claims as "nothing more than hot air."

"It may have been very important to gather sufficient evidence to lead to the nullification of the election as [Ruto] had desired," he told DW. "I say this because none of the prayers, not a single prayer by the petitioners have been granted."

In response to the ruling, Odinga expressed his disappointment but swiftly promised to use it as a stepping stone for even more reforms in Kenya's democratic space.

"We find it incredible that the judges [ruled] against us on all nine grounds and resulted to unduly exaggerated language to refute our claims," he said. "[However] we have always stood for the rule of law and the constitution. In this regard, we respect the opinion of the court, although we vehemently disagree with their decision."

In an interesting development, since Ruto was declared the winner on August 15, allegiances have been shifting gradually among members of the political class and even among Odinga's staunchest supporters.

"I fully supported Raila's coalition," a former Odinga supporter told DW. "But how things stand now, I have decided to stop supporting him and I have accepted that Raila has lost."

Praise for the judiciary from Ruto's camp

President-elect Ruto said he welcomed the court's verdict with "tremendous humility," and praised the Kenyan judiciary as a beacon of constitutionalism.

"[The judges'] professionalism has elevated the stature of the judiciary, enhanced the place of the petition process in legitimizing election results as the true reflection of the people's decisions, and afforded the nation an opportunity to reflect, debate and come to terms with the implications of the last election," he told reporters at a press conference shortly after the verdict.

The sentiment was echoed by governance expert Bigambo who hailed the work of the judges in that they relied purely on the material evidence presented to the court.

"This decision has raised the threshold of election nullification, [so] that [finding] anomalies withing the process — or even in the forms when it comes to matters of tallying — may not really warrant a nullification of a presidential election result," he told DW.

Outgoing president Uhuru Kenyatta, who had endorsed Odinga, has promised to "oversee a smooth transition to the next administration," however he pointedly did not congratulate Ruto by name. 

Kenyatta also infamously referred to the Supreme Court judges as "crooks" back in 2017 when his own win was nullified after the court found the election process to be full of "irregularities and illegalities," prompting a fresh vote.

Reflecting on election chaos

Responding the court's decision, the chairperson for the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), Wafula Chebukati, said that the "abuse of IEBC staff reached an unimaginable scale" before, during and after the August 9 polls, including the assault and injury of the chairman, and several electoral commissioners at the national tallying center during the declaration of the results.

Before the results were made official, there were chaotic scenes, with scuffles breaking out in the tallying hall.

Chebukati condemned the violence and stressed that staff members of the IEBC should not have to put themselves at such risk.

What comes next?

Since the vote and the Supreme Court's ruling, Ruto and his team have been careful to strike a conciliatory tone with the opposition.

"I extend a hand of brotherhood to all my competitors and to all their supporters," said Ruto. "We are not enemies, we are Kenyans."

Ruto currently has the support of the majority of the parliament. After his swearing-in, he will nominate his cabinet.

Ndindi Nyoro, a supporter of Ruto and an MP for the Kiharu Constituency, told DW the new government is keen to oversee a growth in agriculture which would significantly reduce the costs of living, as well as provide more affordable housing. 

"We are looking into uplifting the majority of town dwellers in Kenya [so that they] have a place to call home," he said. "[We will create] employment for the majority of the youth who will be engaged in the creation of that space."

Edited by: Ineke Mules