IEBC Responds to Claims Dead Voters Could Influence Ruto’s 2027 Election Bid

The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) has rejected suggestions that deceased Kenyans could be used to influence the outcome of an election, insisting that its biometric safeguards make such a scenario impossible.

The clarification followed controversial remarks by UDA Secretary General Hassan Omar, who suggested that “even the dead would rise to ensure President William Ruto wins,” triggering debate over the credibility and security of Kenya’s electoral system.

IEBC Commissioner Alutalala Mukhwana explained that voters must undergo biometric verification at polling stations, where fingerprints and iris scans are used to establish their identity.

“Biometric machines use fingerprints and iris scans. How will the deceased vote? How will they register?” Mukhwana said.

He maintained that without a successful biometric match, the voting system prevents an individual from casting a ballot using another person’s identity. According to the commissioner, a deceased person cannot register as a new voter, while an existing record should not be reactivated after the death has been formally reported.

However, concerns surrounding deceased persons appearing on the voter register are not entirely new. An audit conducted by KPMG ahead of the 2022 General Election identified 246,465 records belonging to deceased individuals that were still listed as active voters.

The audit also uncovered 481,711 duplicate voter registrations and 226,143 cases involving identification documents that did not genuinely belong to the registered individuals. Another 164,269 voters were found to have used invalid identification documents.

The findings prompted the electoral commission to announce plans to remove about 1.18 million questionable records from the register.

Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi also dismissed Omar’s remarks, arguing that President Ruto has no need to manipulate elections and would rely on his political support.

Meanwhile, former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has raised separate concerns over the IEBC’s planned KSh6.5 billion election technology procurement.

Against this backdrop, Mukhwana urged politicians to avoid reckless statements that could undermine public confidence in the electoral process.