William Ruto, newly-elected president of Kenya, addresses the nation after the announcement of the election winner at the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) Center in Bomas in Nairobi, Kenya, on Monday, Aug. 15, 2022. (Michele Spatari/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Kenya’s Supreme Court on Monday upheld William Ruto’s victory in the August 9 presidential election, ending weeks of political uncertainty and delivering a blow to challenger Raila Odinga who had alleged fraud in the poll.
“This is a unanimous decision. The petitions are hereby dismissed, as a consequence we declare the first respondent (Ruto) as president-elect,” Chief Justice Martha Koome said.
The court dismissed all nine issues at the heart of the challenge to the results, which had delivered victory to Ruto by a margin of less than two percentage points.
“The… irregularities were not of such magnitude as to affect the final results of the presidential election,” Koome declared.
Ruto, the 55-year-old incumbent deputy president, is now due to take office on September 13.
Both the Ruto and Odinga camps had pledged to accept the court’s ruling.
© Agence France-Presse