High Court Suspends FKF County Elections, Hours Before They Take Place

The Football Kenya Federation (FKF) branch elections scheduled for Saturday, November 9 have hit a stumbling block after they were suspended by the High Court.

On Friday, November 8, the stay order was enforced after a group calling itself the Kenya Football Association filed a case claiming that it was the legitimate authority to conduct the polls.

As a result of the petition, the court issued an injunction that effectively blocked the FKF from conducting the polls, hours before they were set to take place.

"We've taken note of the orders that have been issued by the Kitui High Court; consequently, all county elections scheduled for November 9 have been halted," the board stated in a post on X, adding that it has suspended the elections in accordance with the ruling.

Milimani Law Courts in Nairobi. /CITIZEN DIGITAL

The elections were scheduled to take place in 48 branches across the 47 counties, representing all counties in the country (with Nairobi divided into two), and are part of the process of electing branch chairpersons.

These chairpersons will serve as delegates in the national elections, where they will elect the President and NEC officials.

In addition to branch chairpersons, 46 other votes will be cast by representatives from clubs as well as the referees’, players’ and coaches’ associations. The clubs eligible to vote include;

• 18 Kenyan Premier League clubs.
• 10 National Super League clubs.
• 10 FKF Division One men’s clubs.
• 3 Women Premier League Clubs.
• 2 Women National Super League clubs.

With the latest setback, the future of the county elections in Kitui is now uncertain, with candidates who were set to compete in the polls made to wait for the court's next decision.

Polls in the 47 other branches are, however, set to go on as planned, with Baringo, Tharaka Nithi, Kirinyaga and Makueni counties fielding candidates who will run unopposed.

Similarly, in Homa Bay, Mandera, Nakuru, Samburu, Tana River and Trans-Nzoia counties, no elections will be held for the chair and running mate positions since candidates for these positions are also running unopposed. 

A week ago, it was all set for Kitui and all other counties after Hesbon Owilla, the chair of the FKF electoral board released the final list of candidates for county, National Executive Committee Member and Presidential positions.

Those elected as county chairpersons will participate as delegates in the upcoming national elections slated for December 7 where a new FKF President, Vice President and NEC Members will be elected. However, Kitui's real likelihood of missing out on county elections on Saturday could see the county fail to field a chairperson for the FKF Presidential elections.

The upcoming polls to elect a new FKF President are set to be hotly contested, as there is set to be a new name at the helm after Nick Mwendwa has exhausted his two terms. However, Mwendwa is seeking to retain an FKF leadership position, acting as the deputy of Doris Petra, who worked as his deputy during his tenure.

This caused controversy, with Sports Cabinet Secretary (CS) Kipchumba Murkomen calling on the outgoing FKF boss to quit his ambitions, citing ineligibility.

"For as long as we are doing FKF elections on enforcement of term limits, it is not tenable by law for a former president to run as vice president," the CS stated while he appeared before the National Assembly Departmental Committee on Sports and Culture on Tuesday, October 5.

"Anyone who thinks law is absent in my opinion is misinterpreting the law. As long as we said we will be having term limits, it is not possible, it is not neat, it is not nice, and it is not even morally good to find yourself in a place of being president and then the next day deputy president."