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Former Chief Registrar of Judiciary Anne Amadi. [Boniface Okendo, Standard]
The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) selection panel has published the names of 11 candidates shortlisted for the position of chairperson to replace the late Wafula Chebukati.
Additionally, one hundred and five (105) candidates have been shortlisted for commissioner positions.
A review of the shortlist by The Standard identified several well-known figures, including former government officials, legal professionals, and public figures. Among them are:
Anne Atieno Amadi – Former Chief Registrar of the Judiciary Charles Ayako Nyachae – Lawyer and son of veteran politician Simon Nyachae Joy Brenda Mdivo – Legal analyst Dr. Duncan Oburu Ojwang – Former dean of the School of Law at Africa Nazarene University Abdulqadir Lorot Ramadhan – Lawyer Edward Katama Ngeywa – Former electoral official Erastus Edung Ethekon – Governance expert Francis Kissinger – Political analyst Jacob Ngwele Muvengei – Former Nairobi County Assembly clerk Lilian Wanjiku Manegene – Electoral law expert Robert Akumu Asembo – Lawyer and former football administrator Saul Simiyu Wasilwa – Governance consultantNotably, former IEBC Chief Executive James Oswago, who led the commission before being succeeded by Ezra Chiloba ahead of the 2017 General Election, was not among those shortlisted, though he had applied for the top role.
Among the 105 candidates shortlisted for commissioner positions is Ann Njeri Nderitu, the current Registrar of Political Parties and CEO of the Office of the Registrar of Political Parties (ORPP).
Interviews for the chairperson position will be conducted from Monday, March 24, to Wednesday, March 26, while those for commissioner positions will follow from Thursday, March 27, to Thursday, April 24, 2025.
Selection panel chairperson Nelson Makanda announced that shortlisted candidates must present valid clearance certificates from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), the Higher Education Loans Board (HELB), the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC), the Commission for University Education (for applicants with foreign degrees), and any registered credit reference bureau.
The IEBC selection panel is under pressure to ensure a transparent recruitment process, as the incoming team will play a key role in overseeing Kenya’s next electoral cycle.
Last week, the selection panel announced that 1,356 individuals had applied for the vacancies left by Chebukati and his team.
Of these, 37 applied for the chairperson position, while 1,319 sought one of the six commissioner seats.
Makanda revealed that they received 1,848 applications in total, but 211 individuals submitted multiple applications, 91 failed to specify the position they were applying for, and 14 applied for roles that were not advertised.
“The total number of valid applications is 1,356. The names and detailed qualifications of all applicants for the chairperson and commissioner positions are available,” he said.
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