The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission is targeting the introduction of electronic voting for Kenyans living abroad before the current commission leaves office in 2031.
IEBC Vice Chairperson Fahima Abdallah on Sunday said the commission would work with other relevant institutions to overcome legal and technological barriers to enable Kenyans in the diaspora to exercise their democratic right without necessarily having to travel to embassies, the designated polling stations.
Speaking during the an engagement with Kenyans in New York, Abdallah said the commission plans to widen access to voting for Kenyans in diaspora and strengthen the use of technology to facilitate greater participation in elections.
She, however, stressed that electronic voting would not be available in the 2027 General Election.
“The law as it is says that elections can only be done on Kenyan soil. That means in Kenyan missions abroad,” she said.
“As a commission, we are going to work together with all the other institutions to ensure whatever needs to be done is done to enable each and every one in diaspora shall be able to participate in their democratic right.”
She said the commission would progressively develop the technology needed to eventually introduce electronic voting for Kenyans abroad.
“We want to enhance the technology to a point where in future, although not in this coming election, maybe before we leave the commission in 2031, that we shall be able to have the diaspora have e-voting,” Abdallah said.
The proposal would represent a major shift in how Kenya conducts diaspora elections, which currently require eligible voters abroad to participate through designated Kenyan diplomatic missions.
For the 2027 election, the IEBC is focused on expanding physical access to voting for Kenyans abroad.
The commission has been increasing the number of countries covered by diaspora registration and voting, responding to concerns that many Kenyans living outside the country face significant distances and logistical challenges in accessing polling stations.
It has expanded diaspora voter registration from 12 to 26 countries.
These include Saudi Arabia, Botswana, Oman, Australia, Sweden, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Ghana, Italy, the DRC, Nigeria, Ireland, Türkiye, Ethiopia, China and Mozambique.
In the 2022 General Election, diaspora voting was conducted in only 12 countries across East Africa, Southern Africa, Europe, North America and the Middle East.
These were Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, South Sudan, South Africa, the US, the UK, Canada, Germany, Qatar and the UAE.
However, diaspora voting remains limited in scope.
Under Kenya’s current electoral framework, registered voters living abroad can only participate in presidential elections and national referendums. They do not vote for governors, senators, MPs, woman representatives or MCAs.
The push for electronic voting also comes as the IEBC seeks to expand participation in the 2027 General Election, with the commission targeting a larger voter register.
Under the proposed future system, eligible Kenyans abroad could potentially cast their ballots electronically without travelling to an embassy or other designated polling centre.
