The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) has dismissed media reports claiming that the proposed Election Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026 seeks to abolish live transmission of election results, ban media coverage of polling results, and reintroduce manual voter identification similar to the system used during the 2007 General Election.
In a statement issued by IEBC Chairperson Erastus Edung Ethekon, the Commission described the reports as inaccurate and a misrepresentation of the Bill currently before Parliament.
The Commission clarified that the Bill does not propose any changes to Section 44 of the Elections Act, which provides for the use of the Integrated Elections Management System (KIEMS) for voter registration, voter identification and electronic transmission of election results. Instead, it introduces a complementary mechanism to facilitate results transmission in areas where network connectivity is insufficient to support electronic transmission.
IEBC explained that the amendments are intended to align the Elections Act with the Supreme Court’s 2017 presidential election ruling, which affirmed that the official election result is the one recorded in the statutory Form 34A at the polling station. Under the proposed changes, presiding officers will continue to electronically transmit images of the signed statutory results forms while ensuring the original physical forms remain the primary record for verification.
The Commission said all election result forms will continue to be published on its online public portal, allowing political parties, candidates, observers, the media and members of the public to access them in accordance with the Elections Act.
The proposed law also retains the existing process where presiding officers submit original Form 34As to constituency returning officers, who compile constituency results in Form 34B before forwarding both sets of original documents to the National Returning Officer for verification, tallying and declaration of the presidential results.
IEBC further emphasized that vote counting and the announcement of results at polling stations will continue to be conducted openly and transparently in the presence of party agents, election observers and the media.
The Commission noted that the Bill also seeks to remove provisions of the Elections Act that were declared unconstitutional by the High Court in the Katiba Institute & 3 Others v Attorney General & 2 Others case. It said the amendments are intended to fill legislative gaps created by that judgment and establish a constitutionally compliant framework for election result management and the resolution of election disputes.
IEBC reaffirmed its commitment to safeguarding the integrity, credibility and transparency of Kenya’s electoral process, saying the proposed amendments are designed to strengthen legal certainty while ensuring every election reflects the sovereign will of the people
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