Activist Okiya Omtatah Drafts Bill Introducing US-Like Electoral College Vote to Kenya Presidential Election

Kenyan activist Okiya Omtatah has come with a a Bill to have the Constitution amended for Kenya adopt the electoral college system of voting to elect a president, similar to that used in the United States.

Dubbed the Constitution of Kenya Draft Amendment Bill 2017, it seeks to amend Article 138 of the Constitution 2010 to insert a provision that will change the election of a president and his deputy to using of electoral vote.

The electoral college will apply on a county-by-county basis, contrary to the current system, where both are declared elected when they win the popular vote by garnering a 50 percent of the total votes cast, plus one vote.

In the bill, activist Omtatah wants sub article 138 (3) of the Constitution amended to bar tallying of presidential votes at the national level.

“Each one of the 47 counties shall constitute one presidential electoral point and each one of the 290 constituencies shall also constitute one presidential electoral point,” the draft partly reads.

In the draft, Omtatah proposes a total 337 electoral college for electing a president, standing for 290 constituencies plus 47 counties.

The Bill argues that devolving the presidency would “enhance the status of minority groups”.

“By making the votes of a given county an all-or-nothing affair, minority groups can provide the critical edge that enables a candidate to win. This will encourage candidates to court a wide variety of such minorities and advocacy groups,” the Bill reads.

The law says that, for constitution to be amended, one must collect at least one million signatures to trigger a referendum in case the National Assembly rejects the Bill.

Once the signatures are collected, the motion is tabled in all 47 county assemblies, and for it to pass, it must be approved by at least 24 counties to qualify for forwarding to the National Assembly.

“Should Parliament pass it then it is signed into law by the President,” Omtatah said.