Kenyans without university degrees will be allowed to contest for president, governor or Member of Parliament in the 2027 General Election, the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) has clarified.
IEBC Commissioner Ann Nderitu said the commission cannot enforce the degree requirement because courts have declared the relevant provisions in the Elections Act unconstitutional. She said the position will apply during the nomination process unless there is a new legal development before the elections.
“As we start now, there is no requirement for a degree for anybody. That’s the situation we are in,” Nderitu said during an interview on Citizen TV.
The clarification opens the way for aspirants who do not hold university degrees to seek elective positions in the next General Election.
However, they will still have to meet other constitutional and legal requirements set for candidates.
These include being a Kenyan citizen, being registered as a voter and meeting the requirements for nomination by a political party or running as an independent candidate.
Aspirants must also comply with leadership and integrity provisions as well as other conditions attached to the particular office they want to contest.
Nderitu explained that the degree requirement had previously been challenged in court, with petitioners questioning whether it was constitutional to make university education a condition for people seeking the country’s top elective positions.
According to the commissioner, the courts considered Article 27 of the Constitution, which provides for equality and freedom from discrimination.
They also considered Article 10, which requires public participation in the development of laws and policies.
The court also considered the number of Kenyans with university degrees. Nderitu cited the 2019 Census, which placed the proportion of Kenyans with university degrees at about 3.5 per cent.
She said the ruling found that making a university degree compulsory could prevent a large majority of Kenyans from seeking key elective positions.
“According to the ruling, it means that the rest of the Kenyan 96.5 per cent cannot participate in elections for governor, for president and for member of parliament. Meaning then, that is discriminatory,” she said.
Nderitu said the requirement could be brought back in future, but only through the proper legislative process.
Such a process would have to provide an opportunity for Kenyans to participate and give their views before any new requirement is introduced.
“Unless now, maybe somebody will go to court, or we then start the process of public participation and now allow the degree process now to come through the proper public participation,” she said.
For now, the IEBC position is clear. Lack of a university degree will not prevent an otherwise qualified Kenyan from seeking the presidency, governorship or a parliamentary seat in the 2027 election.
