Anti-government protesters protesting along Moi Avenue in Nairobi on July 23, 2024.
The electoral agency has launched a series of initiatives that will culminate in the resumption of continuous voter registration. The aim is to register an additional 5.7 million new voters ahead of the 2027 elections.
This process, which is set to begin on September 29, 2025, is expected to have a significant impact on the 2027 presidential election, as the additional new voters, primarily young people, could determine the outcome of the next general election.
Continuous voter registration was suspended when the commission became dysfunctional following the departure of the Wafula Chebukati-led team in January 2023.
Kenyan voters wait in line to cast their ballots on August 9, 2022. Each general election has generated calls for electoral justice. And we have come a long way – from mlolongo voting in 1988 to electronic identification of voters and transmission of results.
According to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), the current electoral register contains 22.1 million names, meaning the 2027 election will be decided by approximately 27.8 million voters, minus those who will have died by the time of the election.
“The Commission projects to register an additional 5.7 million new voters, a majority being youth who have attained the age of majority,” IEBC states in a publication on its website.
“In preparation for the 2027 General Election, the Commission projects to gazette 55,393 polling stations, up from 46,229 in 2022, and procure Kenya Integrated Election Management System (KIEMS) kits worth Sh7 billion to replace the 45,352 currently in use that were bought in 2017.”
The commission has since rolled out activities to ensure it nets eligible voters who are yet to obtain the vital document. The new team has begun mapping of registration centres so as to verify both existing and proposed new centres to ensure accessibility across the country.
Further, the team has announced plans for stakeholder engagement at the constituency level to build awareness and promote participation. The commission is also in the process of configuring and testing the Kenya Integrated Election Management System (KIEMS) kits. Other activities lined up include training of the registration officers as well as voter education program
“This exercise is a vital step in ensuring that every eligible Kenyan has the opportunity in shaping the country’s future through democratic elections. It is particularly directed towards young people who have recently attained 18 years, and all citizens who have not yet registered or need to update their voter information,” IEBC notes.
Protesters picketing along Kimathi Street in Nairobi during the commemoration of the Gen-Z protests on June 2, 2025.
There is already a scramble for the crucial youth vote by both President William Ruto and the opposition figures, who have declared interest for the 2027 presidential race.
Popularly known as the Gen Zs, this generation has since taken an active role in the country’s politics. Although some of them were already registered before the 2022 elections, more would be eligible voters in the next poll, making them the most significant demography in the 2027 race.
Born between the late 1990s and 2010, this group of young Kenyans is emerging not just as a voting bloc, but as a cultural and political movement. They have refused to identify with any of the major political players who have historically divided the country along ethnic lines.
Most of the Gen Zs will have hit the voting age in 2027, analysis of the 2019 census data produced by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) shows.
Four in five of the Gen Zs, or more than 14 million, will be eligible for voting, an increase of 79.4 percent of this cohort that were old enough to register as voters in 2022 when Dr Ruto swept to power on the back of youth economic empowerment.
Protesters march along the Moi Avenue in Mombasa on June 25, 2025.
Kenyans aged 18 to 34 will number 17.8 million, reflecting the predominant role they will play in deciding the country’s political trajectory from 2027.
In the 2022 elections, Dr Ruto won by polling 7,176,141 votes against Mr Odinga’s 6,942,930.
In that election, there were a total of 22.1 million registered voters, but only 14.3 million voters turned up to cast their ballot, meaning close to eight million voters failed to participate in the crucial exercise.
A report by IEBC showed that the youth turnout in 2022 was remarkably low. The same report showed that there were 8,811,691 registered voters aged between 18 and 34 – constituting 40 per cent of total number of voters ahead of the 2022 poll. This implies that their numbers alone were enough to tilt the outcome.
“Gen Z will have historical influence in the 2027 elections and subsequent ones,” says Mr Javas Bigambo, political analyst.
He notes that, in order for their power to be felt in the country’s governance, the youth must coalesce around ideals when making decisions in the next poll.
“The potency of their power and influence can no longer be ignored, and now they realise that they don't have to be mobilised by any politician. Now they should master the art of political power control and access, but most importantly, to coalesce around ideals, not sheer anger and amorphousness,” Mr Bigambo notes.
Analysis of the past voting patterns have shown how certain areas have always voted as bloc depending on the direction taken by their political kingpins.
But this traditional political arithmetic is threatened going into 2027 general elections as Gen Zs, who have in the past stayed away from politics, are beginning to take up an active role.
President William Ruto assents to the County Allocation of Revenue Bill, 2025 and the County Public Finance Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2023 at Homa Bay’s State Lodge on August 13, 2025.
In 2022, both the Mt Kenya and Rift Valley blocs rallied behind Dr Ruto, delivering nearly to the last man.
According to the 2022 election data by IEBC, the ten Mt Kenya counties and seven from the North Rift collectively handed Dr Ruto 4.5 million votes, translating to 63 per cent of his total votes.
Laikipia, Tharaka Nithi, Murang’a, Kiambu, Nyeri, Kirinyaga, Nyandarua, Embu, Meru and Nakuru collectively gave the President nearly three million votes. With the 2,938,309 votes from the 10 Mt Kenya counties, Dr Ruto topped up with 1.6 million votes from the seven Rift Valley counties.
The same voting bloc also delivered two victories for Mr Kenyatta in 2013 and 2027.
In the 2013 poll, Mr Kenyatta polled 6.1 million to secure 50.07 per cent of the national vote to avoid a runoff while Mr Odinga bagged 5.3 million in the election that the former president barely went over the 50-per cent mark by only 800,000 votes. There were a total of 14,352,533 registered voters with IEBC recording 85.91 voter turnout, representing 12,330,028 votes.
Former president Uhuru Kenyatta.
Mr Kenyatta would in 2017 widen the lead over Mr Odinga to 1.4 million in the presidential vote whose results were, however, nullified, occasioning the repeat vote. In the 2017 poll, IEBC records showed 19,611,423 registered voters. Mr Kenyatta garnered 8,203,290 (54.27 per cent) against Mr Odinga’s 6,762,224 (44.74 per cent).
Prof David Monda, a United States-based political analyst, describes the youth as a potent force for social change—but notes that ethnic mobilization will still influence the 2027 polls.
“The difference is it will not be the sole and preponderant determinant of voter choice. Kitchen table issues that transcend ethnic identity are also becoming very important. In this regard, while politicians will be working on their tyranny of numbers statistics to win office, they also have to address issues key to the Gen Z's like the economy, good governance, justice for extrajudicial killings and transparency,” says Prof Monda.
“The key here is the Gen Z wave could be the swing vote in determining close elections. But, ethnic mobilization is still a factor in Kenyan politics,” he notes.
