Govt Declares Tuesday A Public Holiday

The government has declared Tuesday, August 9 a public holiday.

This has been announced through a Gazette Notice dated Thursday, August 4 by Interior Cabinet Secretary, Fred Matiang'i.

The holiday has been set aside to allow Kenyans to vote in the August 9 general elections.

"It is notified for information to the public that the Cabinet Secretary for Interior and Co-ordination of National Government, pursuant to and in exercise of the powers conferred by section 2 (4) of the Public Holidays Act, read together with Articles 101 (1), 177 (1) (a) and 180 (1) of the Constitution of Kenya 2010, declares Tuesday, 9th August 2022, as a public holiday," read the Gazette Notice in part.

"This will afford the people of Kenya the opportunity to participate in the 2022 general elections of Members of Parliament, Members of County Assemblies and County Governors, and the President."

Kenya hosts the General elections after every five years, where Kenyans get the opportunity to choose their leaders. An election is held on the second Tuesday in the month of August.

This might be the last public holiday declared by CS Matiang'i as many Kenyans have already started making plans to travel upcountry where they are registered as voters.

How To Vote in the August 9 elections

The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) has explained the procedure Kenyans will use to cast their vote at their respective polling stations.

Polling stations across the country will be expected to open at around 6 am and close at 5 pm, even though Kenyans will be expected to queue in droves for the majority of the early hours of the morning.

With queues expected to be long, those who will not have voted by the closing time of the polling stations but will be there by then will be allowed to vote during the extended period.

1. Voter enters polling station with ID/Passport

Your National Identification Card or your Kenyan Passport will be required to access the polling station. The ID Card is a mandatory requirement, that is, you cannot enter the station without it.

2. Voter identified and authenticated using the KIEMS kit

The Kenya Integrated Election Management System (KIEMS) will be used to identify and authenticate the voter electronically through the Electronic Voter Identification (EVID) system. Voter identification ensures that the voter is identified in the voters' register so that they are eligible to cast their vote.

3. Voter issued with 6 stamped ballot papers

After successful identification, the voter will be issued with six ballot papers by an IEBC official, all stamped. The ballot papers have been categorised into presidential, gubernatorial, senatorial, Members of Parliament, Woman Representatives, and Members of the County Assembly candidates.

4. Voter marks the ballot papers secretly

After being issued the ballot papers, the voter then moves to a temporary enclosed structure where they will mark the ballot papers with the candidate of their choice. This is either done using a tick (✓) or a cross (✗) against the name and symbol of a voter’s candidate.

The symbol is either of the party or an independent candidate. A voter should only mark once using one symbol and mark inside the box.

5. Voter casts ballot papers in the labelled ballot boxes.