Kenya diaspora voter registration to start Jan 21 to Feb 4
The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) will roll out the second phase of Enhanced Continuous Voter Registration (ECVR) starting mid January 2022 in preparation for the August 9th General Elections.
The Commission is extending diaspora voter registration exercise to seven more countries: the United Kingdom, Canada, the United States, South Sudan, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Germany.
In a document issued by IEBC regarding diaspora Voter Registration, IEBC stated that the registration for citizens residing outside Kenya would start on 21st January 2022, and end on 4th February 2022. The exercise is to be conducted during the official working hours at the Kenyan Embassies, High Commissions and Consulates in respective countries.
Diaspora Kenyans who will be in Kenya during the registration period and would like to vote while abroad in August, can register at the IEBC office at the Anniversary Towers in Nairobi. This will enable them to vote in Diaspora in August after they return abroad.
In December 2021, the Commission mapped voter registration centres in Kenyan Embassies and Consulates including in Canada [Ottawa, Toronto and Vancouver].
IEBC also notes that the Commission will use Biometric Voter Registration (BVR) kits to capture biometric and biographic details of the voters.
To be eligible for voter registration, a Kenyan citizen residing abroad must be of 18 and older, have a valid Kenyan passport or a national ID card for citizens residing within the East African Community; present his/ her identification documents at a designated registration center; manually fill Form J application form and allow his/her biometric and biographic data to be taken.
The Commission chairperson Wafula Chebukati clarified that a registered voter in the diaspora would only be voting for the Presidential elective position.
At the same time, Chebukati said ECVR II captured eligible Kenyan voters living in Burundi, Tanzania, Rwanda, Uganda and South Africa, who participated in 2017 General Election.
To apply for registration as a voter, a Kenyan citizen residing outside of Kenya must
~WakenyaCanada
