President William Ruto has officially gazetted the appointment of Erastus Edung Ethekon as the new chairperson of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), along with six new commissioners, in compliance with a recent High Court ruling.
The move comes days after a three-judge bench—comprising Justices Bahati Mwamuye, John Chigiti, and Roselyne Aburili—declared Ruto’s initial gazettement of the officials unconstitutional.
The court ruled that the President had acted in violation of conservatory orders issued earlier by Justice Lawrence Mugambi, which had temporarily barred the appointments. As a result, the judges nullified the initial gazette notice but upheld the validity of the nomination process itself.
In response, President Ruto has now issued a fresh gazette notice, effectively regularising the process and clearing the way for the swearing-in of the new IEBC team.
Ethekon will serve a six-year term as chair, in accordance with Article 250(2) of the Constitution and the IEBC Act.
The newly gazetted commissioners are Ann Njeri Nderitu, Moses Alutalala Mukhwana, Mary Karen Sorobit, Hassan Noor Hassan, Francis Odhiambo Aduol, and Fahima Araphat Abdallah. Like the chairperson, each commissioner will also serve for six years.
The case challenging the appointments had been filed by activists Boniface Mwangi and Kelvin Roy Omondi, who sought to nullify the entire process, citing concerns over procedural flaws, lack of regional balance, and exclusion of persons with disabilities.
However, the court dismissed these claims, finding no fault in the selection panel’s work or the qualifications of the nominees.
With the fresh gazette notice now issued, the path is clear for the new IEBC team to be sworn in and begin work ahead of key electoral reforms and preparations for upcoming by-elections and the 2027 General Election.
