William Ruto Wins Kenyan Presidential Election

William Ruto has won the race to be the fifth president of the East African nation, according to results announced by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC).

“There are no losers. The people of Kenya have won because we raised the political bar,” the president-elect said after the announcement on Monday. “There is no looking back, we are looking to the future, we need all hands on deck to move forward.”

It was a narrow margin of victory with Ruto winning a little more than seven million votes and Odinga securing a little less than seven million, the IEBC said.

Chaos emerged just before the declaration when the electoral commission’s vice chair and three other commissioners told journalists they could not support the “opaque nature” of the final phase.

“We cannot take ownership of the result that is going to be announced,” vice chair Juliana Cherera said. At the declaration venue, police surged to impose calm amid shouting as pushing and shoving ensued.

More soon …