Kenya IEBC rejects claims election bill would ban live result streaming

The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) in Kenya has denied media reports that the proposed Election Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026 aims to scrap live streaming of election results, ban broadcast of poll data, or revert to the manual voter‑identification system used in 2007. IEBC Chairperson Erastus Edung Ethekon said the reports were inaccurate and misrepresented the legislation currently before Parliament.

The commission clarified that the bill does not amend Section 44 of the Elections Act, which authorises the Integrated Elections Management System for voter registration, identification and electronic transmission of results. Instead, it introduces a complementary mechanism for transmitting results in areas with insufficient network coverage, while retaining electronic transmission where possible. The amendments also align the Act with the Supreme Court’s 2017 ruling that the statutory Form 34A recorded at the polling station is the primary official result, with electronic images of the form to be posted on the IEBC’s online portal and original forms remaining the definitive record.

Overall, the IEBC affirmed that vote counting and result announcements will continue to be open, transparent, and accessible to parties, observers and the media.