IEBC chairman Wafula Chebukati. [Photo/twitter.com]
The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) has announced the official campaign period for political aspirants.
IEBC said that the official campaign period for the August 8th 2017 General Election shall commence on 28th May, 2017 and end on 5th August, 2017.
In a press statement from the IEBC chair Wafula Chebukati, also reminded political parties wishing to participate in the elections to finalize their primaries on or before the 26th April, 2017.
The commission says parties are expected to first resolve all intra-party disputes using their internal mechanisms before reaching out to the Political Parties Dispute Tribunal to determine disputes arising out of party primaries.
Political parties will then be required to submit the persons nominated to contest for the elections to the Commission on or before 10th May, 2017.
“Candidates intending to participate in the general election as independent candidates must submit their names and symbols to the Commission on or before 10th May, 2017. Independent candidates should not be members of any political party by 8th May, 2017, being 3 months before the General Election. Both independent candidates and political party aspirants have to submit their nomination papers for clearance to the Commission’s Returning Officers at the constituency level between 28th May and 2nd June, 2017,” said IEBC.
The statement follows controversies witnesses during the ongoing party primaries of NASA affiliate parties where aspirants have been divided on whether to use the IEBC register, the party list or National Identity cards.
On party defections, Chebukati reminded aspirants of the elections Act, 2011 which stipulates that ‘a political party that nominates a person for an election shall submit to the Commission a membership list of the party in the case of a general election, at least one hundred and twenty days before the date of the election.