In Kenya, the victory of William Ruto contested

Kenyan Vice President William Ruto has become the country's president, according to official results. But opponents and members of the Electoral Commission reject these results.

The Kenyan presidential election should only be a walk in the park for opponent Raila Amolo Odinga, favorite in the polls thanks in particular to the support of outgoing President Uhuru Kenyatta. Facing him stood only one obstacle: Vice President William Ruto. It was ultimately the latter who won the electoral battle.

It is indeed the former vice-president of Uhuru Kenyatta who was declared the winner of the presidential election, according to the results published by the Independent Electoral Commission. William Ruto indeed gathered 50,49% of the votes cast, against 48,86% for "RAO". The opponent biding his time for many years, he now seems pushed towards the exit after this defeat.

Admittedly, the turnout was not as good as in previous presidential elections – 65%, down 13 points from 2017. But the two candidates gathered around 14 million votes out of the 22 million voters who were to go to the polls. For the other candidates, only a few crumbs remained.

A ballot not so transparent?

William Ruto has already celebrated his victory. It must be said that this is symbolic: never a Kalenjin – a community living around the Great Rift Valley, in western Kenya – had never obtained the highest office in this country.

Formerly an ally of dictator Daniel arap Moi, William Ruto, had formed a hybrid coalition for the presidential election. But he promises that, despite his victory, he will work "with all the political leaders" of the country. It remains to be seen whether Raila Odinga will be one of them. For the new Kenyan president, "there is no room for revenge". A message addressed to Kenyatta, his former ally, with whom he fell out.

While waiting for William Ruto to take office, the country is experiencing some turmoil. Blame it on the challenge, on the part of the new opposition, to the declared results. There are now fears of post-election violence, as was the case in 2017 but also ten years earlier.

Already, protests have begun. Supporters of Raila Odinga took to the streets and challenged Ruto's victory. A feeling of injustice confirmed by the attitude of several members of the Electoral Commission: four of them - out of the seven that make up the commission - had, before the publication of the results, announced that they would reject these same results, speaking of "opacity" in the counting process.