If I'm elected president, voter registration will be mandatory – Wajackoyah

Roots Party leader George Wajackoyah has pledged to overhaul Kenya’s voter registration system and make registration compulsory for all eligible citizens if elected president.

Speaking in an interview with K24 TV, Wajackoyah said he plans to implement a nationwide referendum within his first year in office to support legislative changes aimed at tightening voter registration processes.

“This is what I will do if I become the president, and I have spoken of a referendum in the first one year. I will make it compulsory,” Wajackoyah said.

“Before you get your National Identity Card (ID) or your driver’s license, you must also register as a voter. If you get your driver’s license, or register as a Kenyan, and do not register as a voter, you become functionless.”

Wajackoyah explained that compulsory registration would help eliminate inefficiencies and corruption linked to voter registration.

“So that we drive away this issue of earmarking finances, or special budgets, which will be stolen through the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission for voter registration,” he said.

He also highlighted reforms for Kenyans living abroad, saying they will be included in the electoral process.

“Look at the Diaspora, for example. We have so many millions of Kenyans in the Diaspora. They are deliberately denied the vote because the system knows that if the Diaspora were to come, it would influence the election,” Wajackoyah said.

He added that voter registration will be made accessible through embassies and designated safe environments, ensuring Kenyans overseas can participate in elections.

Wajackoyah called on younger voters, particularly Generation Z, to take part in shaping the country’s future.

“For the first time, I will say something against Gen Z. They came up with proper momentum, but they have lost it. I am not seeing them going to register as voters,” he said.

“Their legitimacy can only be manifested through votes. I ask them to register because they are the only ones who can bring change.”

The presidential candidate’s proposals come amid growing concerns over low voter registration among young people and the Kenyan Diaspora.

Analysts note that compulsory registration could significantly increase voter participation if successfully implemented.

Wajackoyah’s campaign, which emphasises institutional reforms and civic engagement, positions him as a candidate focused on structural changes to the electoral system.

In an interview on November 14, 2025, Wjackoyah said he would become a “benevolent dictator” if given the opportunity to lead the nation.

“I will be a benevolent dictator because I have to regulate some of the things in this country,” he said. 

“I will have to do things with an iron fist, especially as far as putting the people who have put the country where it is today in their rightful place.”

Benevolent dictatorship is a term that describes a government in which an authoritarian leader exercises absolute political power over the state but is perceived to do so with regard for the benefit of the population as a whole. 

Collins Dictionary states that, “A benevolentdictator may allow for some democratic decision-making to exist, such as through public referenda or elected representatives with limited power.”

“I will fix the corruption menace in the country. We need to recover the looted funds and money. Crime never rots. We will have a busy year in recouping what was stolen,” he added.

“It will not be business as usual; we shall also close down some embassies that have allowed our money to be stashed in their countries.