Kenya: Voters cast ballots to choose new president

Kenyans began voting Tuesday in a tightly contested presidential election as incumbent President Uhuru Kenyatta faces veteran opposition challenger Raila Odinga.

Voters formed long lines at many polling stations before dawn, waiting to cast ballots in an election that will determine the new president, as well as for more than 1,800 elected positions, including governors, legislative representatives and county officials.

Kenyatta, the 55-year-old son of Kenya’s first president after independence from British colonial rule, campaigned on a record of major infrastructure projects, and claimed strong economic growth.
Odinga, 72, also the son of a leader of the independence struggle, has cast himself as a champion of the poor and a harsh critic of endemic corruption.

“I feel positive because we ran a positive campaign,” said Kenyatta, who seeks a 2nd and final term, after voting in his birthplace of Gatundu, north of the capital, Nairobi.
Odinga voted in the poor area of Kibera, an opposition stronghold in the capital, Nairobi. He urged supporters to gather on Wednesday in a downtown park for what he predicted would be a celebration.

The winner of the presidential race must get more than 50 percent of the votes as well as one-quarter or more votes in at least 24 of Kenya’s 47 counties, according to officials. If the front-runner falls short of those benchmarks, the two top contenders will contest a run-off vote.

Kenyatta and challenger Odinga also faced off in the 2013 election. Kenyatta won by a thin margin, with just over 50 percent of the vote.

Source: AP