President of the Republic of Kenya | |
---|---|
Rais wa Jamhuri ya Kenya | |
Government of Kenya | |
Style |
|
Type | |
Residence | State House |
Seat | Nairobi |
Appointer | Direct popular vote or via succession from deputy presidency |
Term length | Five years, renewable once |
Constituting instrument | Constitution of Kenya |
Precursor | Governor-General of Kenya Queen of Kenya |
Inaugural holder | Jomo Kenyatta |
Formation | 12 December 1964 |
Deputy | Deputy President of Kenya |
Salary | KSh. 886,250 (basic) KSh. 1,443,750 (gross) monthly [1] |
Website | www |
Kenyaportal |
The president of the Republic of Kenya (Swahili : Rais wa Jamhuri ya Kenya) is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of Kenya. The president is also the head of the executive branch of the Government of Kenya and is the commander-in-chief of the Kenya Defence Forces. The country's current president is William Ruto since 13 September 2022.
On 12 December 1964, the Republic of Kenya was proclaimed, and Jomo Kenyatta became Kenya's first president. [2]
Kenya has had a total of five presidents since establishment, in successive order: Jomo Kenyatta, Daniel arap Moi, Mwai Kibaki, Uhuru Kenyatta, and the incumbent, William Ruto, who was inaugurated on 13 September 2022. Moi remains the country's longest serving president, having served for a total of 24 years.
According to the current Constitution, if a person wishes to be elected as president, the following qualifications must be met:
A candidate will be disqualified to run for presidency if they have allegiance to a foreign state or is working for the government in any capacity as a public officer. Being a public officer is not applicable to the incumbent president if running for a second term.
The president is elected by popular vote in the general election held in the month of August every five years. For a presidential candidate to be declared the winner, they must have:
The official residence of the president of Kenya is State House, Nairobi.
The wife of the president is referred to as the first lady of Kenya.
A president is eligible for two consecutive terms of five years each, starting from the date the president is sworn in. [5]
The following is a summary of the roles of the president of Kenya as provided in the Constitution of Kenya:
The responsibilities of the president are summarised as follows:
Additionally, a person serving as president has legal immunity, with the exception of crimes under treaties to which Kenya is party with provisions that prohibit such immunity.
As with most other countries, the president of Kenya has a presidential standard to signify their status as the country's head of state and government. Its design is generally based on the country's national flag, although the president has some leeway to customise its appearance. The flag is generally displayed in notable locations associated with the president, usually alongside the national flag, such as the president's offices and the president's official state car, and during notable state occasions.
The presidential standards of Kenya's presidents since the country's independence have been as follows:
The politics of Kenya take place in a framework of a presidential republic, whereby the president is both head of state and head of government, and of a multi-party system in accordance with a new constitution passed in 2010.
Daniel Toroitich arap Moi was a Kenyan politician who served as the second president of Kenya from 1978 to 2002. He is the country's longest-serving president to date. Moi previously served as the third vice president of Kenya from 1967 to 1978 under President Jomo Kenyatta, becoming the president following the latter's death.
The Kenya African National Union (KANU) is a Kenyan political party that ruled for nearly 40 years after Kenya's independence from British colonial rule in 1963 until its electoral loss in 2002. It was known as Kenya African Union (KAU) from 1944 but due to pressure from the colonial government, KAU changed its name to Kenya African Study Union (KASU) mainly because all political parties were banned in 1939 following the start of the Second World War. In 1946 KASU rebranded itself into KAU following the resignation of Harry Thuku as president due to internal differences between the moderates who wanted peaceful negotiations and the militants who wanted to use force, the latter forming the Aanake a forty, which later became the Mau Mau. His post was then occupied by James Gichuru, who stepped down for Jomo Kenyatta in 1947 as president of KAU. The KAU was banned by the colonial government from 1952 to 1960. It was re-established by James Gichuru in 1960 and renamed KANU on 14 May 1960 after a merger with Tom Mboya's Kenya Independence Movement.
Emilio Stanley Mwai Kibaki was a Kenyan politician who served as the third President of Kenya from December 2002 until April 2013. He served in various leadership positions in Kenya's government including being the longest serving Member of Parliament (MP) in Kenya from 1963 to 2013.
Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta is a Kenyan politician who served as the fourth president of Kenya from 2013 to 2022. The son of Jomo Kenyatta, Kenya's first president, he previously served as Deputy Prime Minister from 2008 to 2013.
Stephen Kalonzo Musyoka is a Kenyan politician who was the tenth Vice-President of Kenya from 2008 to 2013. Musyoka served in the government under the late President Daniel arap Moi as the Secretary of Kenya African National Union party (1980-1988), Assistant Minister for Works (1986-1988), Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly (1988-1992), Minister for Foreign Affairs from 1993 until 1998, Minister of Education (1998-2001); and subsequently, under the late President Mwai Kibaki, he was Minister of Foreign Affairs again from 2003 to 2004, then Minister of the Environment from 2004 to 2005. He was an unsuccessful candidate in the 2007 presidential election, after which he was appointed vice-president by Kibaki in January 2008.
Elections in Kenya take place within the framework of a multi-party democracy and a presidential system. The President, Senate and National Assembly are directly elected by voters, with elections organised by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC).
William Kipchirchir Samoei Arap Ruto is a Kenyan politician who is the fifth and current president of Kenya since 13 September 2022. Prior to becoming president, he served as the first elected deputy president of Kenya from 2013 to 2022. He previously served in three cabinet portfolios as the Minister for Home Affairs, the Minister of Agriculture and as Minister for Higher Education.
Wycliffe Musalia Mudavadi is a Kenyan politician and land economist who is currently serving as Prime Cabinet Secretary of Kenya, and since 2023, in an expanded role of Foreign & Diaspora Affairs cabinet secretary of Kenya. As of 1 November 2024, he is also serving as the cabinet secretary in the ministry of interior, albeit in an acting capacity, succeeding Prof. Kithure Kindiki who was appointed Deputy president following the impeachment of Rigathi Gachagua. He is a former party leader of the Amani National Congress (ANC), one of the founding political parties, of the Kenya Kwanza alliance.
Raila Amolo Odinga is a Kenyan politician who served as the Prime Minister of Kenya from 2008 to 2013. He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Langata Constituency from 1992 to 2013 and has been the Leader of Opposition in Kenya since 2013. He is the leader of Azimio la Umoja–One Kenya Coalition Party.
The deputy president of the Republic of Kenya is the principal assistant of the President of the Republic of Kenya. The current Appointed deputy president of Kenya is Kithure Kindiki. He has been serving at this position since 1st November 2024.
John Njoroge Michuki was a Kenyan politician and businessman. He was born at Muguru village in Fort Hall District. He was educated in Kenya and abroad. Michuki emerged as one of the prominent and long-serving civil servants and politicians as well as a businessman in Kenya. Michuki served Kenya in various capacities, including Permanent Secretary in the Finance Ministry, Chairman of the Kenya Commercial Bank, Member of Parliament and Cabinet Minister. He was serving his 4th five-year term as a Member of Parliament for Kangema Constituency. Michuki had a reputation as a "ruthless" and efficient manager, and was widely acknowledged as among the best performing ministers in President Kibaki's Government. He was serving as the Minister for Environment and National Resources at the time of his death.
Gideon Kipsielei Towett Moi is a Kenyan politician and former senator of Baringo County, from 2013 to 2022. He was elected with a landslide win of over 80%, trouncing his opponent Jackson Kosgei. He is also the party leader of the Kenya African National Union (KANU), which for decades was the ruling party in Kenya. He is the youngest son of Kenya's second president, Daniel arap Moi, and Lena Moi. His siblings include; Phillip Moi, Jonathan Moi, John Mark Moi, Raymond Moi, Jennifer Jemutai Kositany, Doris Moi, June Moi.
General elections were held in Kenya on 27 December 2002. Voters elected the president, members of the National Assembly and local officials.
The Government of the Republic of Kenya (GoK) is the national government of the Republic of Kenya located in East Africa. It is composed of 47 Counties, each county with its own semi-autonomous governments, including the national capital of Nairobi, where the national government is primarily based.
General elections were held in Kenya on 4 March 2013. Voters elected the President, members of the National Assembly and newly formed Senate. Also elected include governors, county women representatives and members of county assembly, (MCAs). They were the first elections held under the new constitution, which was approved in a 2010 referendum, and were also the first run by the new Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC). They coincided with the 2013 Kenyan local elections.
The inauguration of Uhuru Kenyatta as the 4th president of Kenya took place on 9 April 2013. Kenyatta won 50.07% of the vote in the 2013 presidential election, after the supreme court dismissed the Raila petition on 30 March 2013. According to Article 141 (2) (b) of the constitution, in case the Supreme Court upholds the victory of the president-elect, the swearing in will take place on "the first Tuesday following the seventh day following the date on which the court renders a decision declaring the election to be valid." The event was held at Kasarani Stadium.A reception bouquet took place at State House,Nairobi.
The presidency of Daniel arap Moi began on 22 August 1978, when Daniel arap Moi was sworn in as the 2nd President of Kenya, and ended on 30 December 2002. Moi, a KANU party member, took office following the death of the then president Jomo Kenyatta on the same day. He was sworn as interim president for 90 days during which the country was to prepare for a presidential election to be held on 8 November. Moi won reelections in 1988, 1992 and 1997, defeating Mwai Kibaki in the latter two elections. He was succeeded by Mwai Kibaki in 2002. He died at the age of 95 on 4 February 2020
The 2018 Kenya handshake was a political truce made on the 9th of March 2018 between Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta and former Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga. The two had been the leaders of opposing political factions amidst widespread political violence and civil unrest; they had previously faced one another in the contested 2017 Kenyan general election. Under the agreement, their political feud was resolved, with Kenyatta agreeing to support Odinga in the upcoming presidential elections. As a result, the Azimio coalition was formed, Uhuru became its chairman, and Odinga as the presidential candidate with Martha Karua as his running mate. They lost to William Ruto, who was Kenyatta's deputy at the time. They challenged Ruto's victory in the Supreme Court, however, Chief Justice Martha Koome said his claims did not meet the evidentiary threshold and dismissed the case. At a March 2023 protest in Nairobi they demanded an audit of the IEBC election servers.