Ol Kalou residents are heading to the polls, with 73,480 registered voters set to elect a new Member of Parliament in a by-election that has attracted nine candidates. The Kenya Times begins its live coverage as Ol Kalou decides.
The by-election is being seen as a key test of political support between President William Ruto’s United Democratic Alliance (UDA), which is backing Samuel Muchina Nyagah, and former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua’s Democracy for the Citizens Party (DCP), which is supporting Sammy Kamau Ngotho.
Other candidates vying for the seat include Edwin Muchiri of the Party of National Unity (PNU), Stephen Wanyoike of the National Liberal Party (NLP), Rachael Njoroge (Independent), Edward Mwaniki of the Kenya Moja Movement (KMM), Abdifatah Hussein of the Federal Party of Kenya (FPK), Timothy Kamau of the People’s Renaissance Movement (PRM), and Moses Njoroge Macharia of the Jubilee Party.
10: 30 AM: DCP Candidate Cast His Vote
DCP Candidate Sammy Kamau casts vote at AC Primary school, Olkalou.
09: 55AM: Ademba Allans Claims He Is Arrested
Photojournalist Ademba Allans has claimed he was arrested in Ol Kalou.
In a post on X, Ademba wrote: “I’ve been arrested. Niko Ol Kalou DCI.”
09: 00 AM: Commissioner on Vehicle Being Burnt
Central Regional Commissioner Joshua Nkanatha said authorities had not received any report of a vehicle being set ablaze, dismissing claims made by UDA candidate Samuel Muchina Nyagah that one of his agents’ vehicles was attacked on the eve of the Ol Kalou by-election.
According to Nkanatha, the alleged incident had not been reported to the police.
08: 32 AM: UDA Candidate Casts His Vote
UDA candidate Samuel Muchina has arrived at Huruma Primary School Polling Station in Ol Kalou to cast his vote.
Nyagah said security had improved on polling day, noting that police officers had been deployed across the constituency.
“I feel today the security is well organized, they are everywhere, the security is quite well today apart from yesterday. One of my vehicles that was ferrying my agent was burnt by goons, but the situation was controlled,” he said.
08:20 AM: Slow Biometric Verification Process Reported
Voting was slowed at several polling stations in the Ol Kalou parliamentary by-election after delays in biometric voter identification using the Kenya Integrated Election Management System (KIEMS).
The slow verification process led to long queues, with some voters reporting they had waited for hours after arriving early in the morning.
07: 00 AM: Long Queues Observed
Long queues formed at Rurii Polytechnic and Huruma Primary School, where United Democratic Alliance (UDA) candidate Samuel Muchina Nyagah is expected to cast his ballot.
DCP Deputy Party Leader Cleophas Malala expressed confidence in the electoral process, saying voting had been peaceful and that residents had turned out in large numbers to exercise their democratic right.
“We are certain that today will be a good day. It has been peaceful, and the people of Ol Kalou have turned out in large numbers to exercise their democratic right,” Malala Said.
O6: 30 AM: Voting Begins
Polling stations opened at 6:00 a.m. and will close at 5:00 p.m. The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) stated that any time lost during polling will be recovered by extending voting hours.
The commission also said that voters who are in the queue by 5:00 p.m. will be allowed to cast their ballots.
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