Race for MP Ng'eno successor: Emurua Dikirr to vote May 14

The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission has set May 14 as the date for the by-election in Emurua Dikirr constituency.

The announcement sets the stage for a high-stakes political contest to fill the seat left vacant by the death of long-serving MP Johanna Ng’eno.

Ng’eno, 53, died alongside five others when a helicopter they were travelling in crashed in Mosop on February 28.

The three-term legislator had represented the constituency since its creation in 2013, winning elections under three different party tickets.

He vied through the Kenya National Congress in 2013, the Kenya African National Union in 2017 and the United Democratic Alliance in 2022.

In a notice published in the Kenya Gazette on March 13, the electoral agency said the poll will be held on Thursday, May 14, alongside two ward by-elections in other parts of the country.

The polls will be held in Porro ward, Samburu county and Endo in Elgeyo Marakwet county.

Speaker of the National Assembly Moses Wetang’ula formally notified IEBC of the vacancy on March 10, in line with constitutional and electoral laws.

The by-election is expected to attract intense political interest in the constituency, which has about 44,040 registered voters, hence the smallest of Narok county’s six constituencies.

The area, largely inhabited by members of the Kipsigis community, was carved out of Kilgoris constituency following the 2007 elections.

Political attention has also focused on Ng’eno’s family, with his widow Naiyanoi Ntutu emerging as a possible candidate after receiving backing from Kapkaon clan elders.

At the late MP’s funeral, his 91-year-old mother, Mary Temas, appealed to residents to allow the family to retain the seat, saying the leadership baton her son held “will remain in the family.”

The commission has appointed Caleb Siriba Gekonde as the returning officer for the constituency, assisted by Sylvia Jepchumba as the deputy returning officer. IEBC said the election would cost approximately Sh60 million.

IEBC warned that all political parties, candidates and supporters must adhere to the Electoral Code of Conduct, noting that election offences will attract penalties under the Election Offences Act.

According to the notice by IEBC chairperson Erastus Ethekon, political parties intending to participate must submit the names of candidates who will take part in party primaries by March 25, 2026, and indicate the dates of the nominations.

Independent candidates must also submit their names and proposed symbols by the same deadline and must not have been members of any political party for at least three months before the by-election.

After party primaries and resolution of any internal disputes, parties will submit the final list of nominees to the commission by April 7.

The official nomination of candidates by the commission will take place on April 15 and 16, after which campaigns will begin and run until May 11, 48 hours before polling day.

IEBC says campaign activities will be allowed daily between 7am and 6pm, while parties and candidates must submit the names of constituency election agents and polling station agents by April 30.

Any disputes arising from the nomination process must be filed within 24 hours and will be determined within ten days, but not later than April 25.

The IEBC also announced that the registration and revision of the voters’ register will remain suspended until June 12 for the affected electoral areas.

For the ward by-elections, the Porro ward vacancy was declared on January 5 and that of Endo on January 27.

The polls will follow the same nomination, campaign, and dispute resolution timelines as the Emurua Dikirr contest.