NAIROBI, Kenya — The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) has dismissed media reports claiming that the proposed Election Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026 seeks to abolish electronic transmission of election results, live broadcasting of polling station outcomes and electronic voter identification.
In a statement issued on Thursday, IEBC Chairperson Erastus Edung Ethekon said the reports misrepresented the contents of the Bill currently before Parliament.
“The media reports are erroneous and a misrepresentation of the Bill as tabled before Parliament,” the Commission said.
The IEBC clarified that the Bill does not propose any amendments to Section 44 of the Elections Act, which provides for the deployment of the Integrated Elections Management System (KIEMS) for voter registration, voter identification and electronic transmission of election results.
Instead, the Commission said the proposed law introduces a complementary mechanism for transmitting results in areas where electronic transmission is not possible due to inadequate mobile network coverage.
According to the IEBC, the proposal is intended to address instances where the minimum 3G network required to transmit statutory election result forms is unavailable.
The Commission further said the Bill aligns the Elections Act with the Supreme Court’s 2017 Presidential Election Petition decision, which affirmed that the legally binding election result is the one recorded in the statutory Results Declaration Form (Form 34A series) at the polling station.
Under the proposed amendments, presiding officers will continue to electronically transmit an image of the completed statutory results declaration form after it has been signed and witnessed by political party and candidate agents present at the polling station.
The Commission said the forms will remain publicly accessible through the IEBC online results portal as provided under Section 39(1C)(c) of the Elections Act.
In addition to electronic transmission, presiding officers will physically deliver the original statutory declaration forms to constituency returning officers, who will collate the results and prepare Form 34B before forwarding both the original Forms 34A and 34B to the National Returning Officer for verification, tallying and declaration of the presidential election results.
The IEBC emphasized that vote counting and the announcement of results at polling stations will continue to be conducted openly in the presence of the media, political party agents and election observers.
The Commission also explained that the Bill 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 decided in 2018.
According to the IEBC, the amendments are intended to align the law with court decisions, close legislative gaps created by the invalidated provisions and provide a clear constitutional framework for election result management and the resolution of election disputes.
“The IEBC remains committed to preserving the integrity, credibility and transparency of the electoral process and ensuring that every election faithfully reflects the sovereign will of the people,” the Commission said.
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