THE NATIONAL POST-ELECTION SYMPOSIUM
On 5th and 6th December 2022, Uchaguzi platform together other Civil Society Organization under the umbrella of the Technical Working Group (TWG) on Elections held a two-day (2 days) Post Election symposium which created a platform where domestic election observers, civil society organizations, independent commissions, legislators and other policymakers, judiciary, associations, and academia came together to charter pathways for advancing constitutionalism, good governance and social justice in Kenya for the next five years. The symposium further provided an opportunity for electoral actors to share their experiences, lessons learnt and propose practical recommendations arising from the observation and interventions of the 2022 electoral processes and performance of electoral duty bearers. The two-day symposium was held at the Boma Hotel and attracted over 200 participants drawn from the aforementioned sectors. The 2022 general election, the 3rd under the present constitutional dispensation, fell against the backdrop of the appointment of 4 new commissioners to the Electoral Management Body (IEBC), the Building Bridges Initiative (the Handshake) and attendant political re-alignments, social class grievances driven by the rising cost of living and poverty levels, perineal electoral related violence, late amendments and adoption of new laws such as the Political Parties (Amendment) Act. These elections provided a unique opportunity to measure Kenya’s democratic growth through a number of interventions and initiatives that were mounted by civil society organizations and electoral duty bearers after the 2017 elections. These interventions included: Provision of technical support to electoral institutions and actors, tracking of the performance of electoral institutions, observation of electoral processes including E-Day processes and results among others. In the spirit of collaboration and coordination, an opportunity for Civil Society actors, therefore, presented itself to share their experiences, document lessons learnt, share key findings and recommendations arising from observation of the 2022 electoral processes and actors. The symposium achieved the following objectives a. Provided a platform for learning and sharing of experiences arising from the observation of the 2022 electoral processes. b. Mobilized and consolidated commitments by civil society actors towards pushing for identified legal and policy adoption/reforms. c. Provided a platform for sharing key findings and recommendations arising from the observation of the 2022 electoral processes. d. Connected perspectives on the civic space through a broadened participation of stakeholders working on human rights protection at national and grass roots level.