Kenyan general election, 1927

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General elections were held in Kenya Colony on 12 February 1927. [1]

Kenya Colony British possession in east Africa between 1920 and 1963

The Colony and Protectorate of Kenya was part of the British Empire in Africa from 1920 until 1963. It was established when the former East Africa Protectorate was transformed into a British Crown colony in 1920. Technically, the 'Colony of Kenya' referred to the interior lands, while a 16 km (10 mi) coastal strip was the 'Protectorate of Kenya' but the two were controlled as a single administrative unit. The colony came to an end in 1963 when a black majority government was elected for the first time and eventually declared independence as Kenya.

Contents

Campaign

Reports before the election noted that of the eleven white seats, five were uncontested with the incumbent returned unopposed, one was likely to be uncontested and the remaining five would be contested. [2] The Reform Party led by Hugh Cholmondeley issued an 18-point manifesto, which was approved by all the incumbent members of the Legislative Council except Hamilton Ward, who partly adhered to its programme, but reserved the right to vote independently. [3] The manifesto included a call for an elected European majority on the Legislative Council. [3] Reports that the mayor of Nairobi James Riddell would run against the Reform Party proved to be unfounded. [3]

White people in Kenya or White Kenyans, are those born in or resident in Kenya who descend from Europeans and/or identify themselves as white. There is currently a minor but relatively prominent white community in Kenya, mainly descended from British, but also to a lesser extent Italian and Greek, migrants dating from the colonial period.

Reform Party (Kenya)

The Reform Party was a political party in Kenya led by Lord Delamere.

Hugh Cholmondeley, 3rd Baron Delamere British Baron

Hugh Cholmondeley, 3rd Baron Delamere,, styled The Honourable from birth until 1887, was a British peer. He was one of the first and most influential British settlers in Kenya.

Following their boycott of the 1924 elections, the Indian population again failed to participate fully in the election, with only one candidate standing in the five-member Indian constituency. As a result, four Indian representatives were appointed to the Council after it was opened on 8 March. [4] By-elections for the four Indian seats were scheduled for the following year, but no candidates were nominated due to the ongoing boycott over the separate voting rolls for Whites and Indians. [5]

Indians in Kenya are citizens and residents of Kenya with ancestral roots in the Indian subcontinent. Most are found in the major urban areas of Nairobi and Mombasa, with others living in rural areas.

Results

European seats
ConstituencyCandidatePartyVotes%Notes
Coast Robert Robertson-Eustace Reform Party UnopposedRe-elected
Kenya Edward Vaughan Kenealy Reform Party Re-elected
Henry Beynon
Kikuyu Corney Durham IndependentElected
Monthermer Montagu
Walter MacLellan Wilson Reform Party Defeated
Lake Conway Harvey Reform Party UnopposedRe-elected
MombasaGG Atkinson Reform Party UnopposedRe-elected
Nairobi North Hamilton Ward IndependentRe-elected
Charles UdallIndependent
Nairobi South Helmuth Schwartze Reform Party Re-elected
Olga Watkins Independent
Plateau North James Kirkwood IndependentElected
John Coney Reform Party Defeated
Plateau South Thomas O'Shea Reform Party UnopposedRe-elected
Rift Valley Hugh Cholmondeley Reform Party UnopposedRe-elected
Ukamba Francis Scott Reform Party Re-elected
Indian seats
Ahmad Hussein Malik Elected
Arab seat
Hamed Mohamed bin Issa Re-elected
Source: Colonial Reports, East Africa, Kenya Gazette

Appointed members

PositionMember
Ex officio members
Attorney General Walter Huggard
Chief Native CommissionerGerald Verner Maxwell
Colonial SecretaryGeoffrey Alexander Stafford Northcote
Commissioner of CustomsEdgar George Bale
Commissioner of LandsArthur George Baker
Director of AgricultureAlexander Holm
Director of EducationEvan Ebenezer Biss
Director of Public WorksHoward Lecky Sikes
Kenya and Uganda Railway General ManagerGodfrey Dean Rhodes
Principal Medical OfficerJohn Langton Gilks
TreasurerReginald Clifton Grannum
Appointed officials
Chief Veterinary OfficerAndrew Gahan Doherty
Lilawi for the CoastAli bin Salim
Officer Commanding TroopsC S Davies
Postmaster GeneralThomas Fitzgerald
Senior Commissioner, CoastHarold Robert Montgomery
Senior Commissioner, KikuyuRuper William Hemsted
Senior Commissioner, NyanzaCecil Moore Dobbs
Senior Commissioner, UkambaWalter Francis Glencairn Campbell
Solicitor-GeneralFrederic Gordon Smith
Appointed unofficial members
Member to represent African interestsJohn Britton
Source: Hansard [6]

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References

  1. Kenya Gazette, 28 January 1927, pp91–97
  2. "News in Brief", The Times, 27 January 1927, p11, Issue 44490
  3. 1 2 3 "As Kenya sees things: Manifesto of Lord Delamere's Party", East Africa, 3 February 1927, p597
  4. "Kenya Legislature Opened: A Year Of Steady Progress", The Times, 9 March 1927, p13, Issue 44525
  5. "Indians In Kenya. Boycott Of The Legislature", The Times, 5 March 1928, p13, Issue 44833
  6. Kenya National Assembly Official Record (Hansard) 1927