25 applicants are in the race to succeed Wafula Chebukati, the former chairperson of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC).
This is according to a panel constituted to recruit new commissioners of the electoral body.
In a statement, Nelson Makanda, the chairperson of the seven-member panel, said a total of nine online and 16 hard-copy applications for the position of IEBC chair had been received by the time the applications closed at 5:00 pm on Tuesday, March 28, 2023.
Further, the chair said 900 applicants applied to fill six vacant commissioner positions.
"I hereby announce that today March, 28th 2023 at 5 pm marked the deadline for submission of applications for the position of Chairperson and six Commissioners of IEBC.
"As at the 5pm deadline, the preliminary perusal of physical and electronic records indicate a total of 9 online applications and 16 hard copy applications for Chairperson of the IEBC had been received. Further, the preliminary examinations of our records indicate that a total of 385 hard copy applications and 515 online applications had been received for the positions of six Commissioners of the IEBC," Makanda said.
Makanda said the panel will now embark on the longlisting exercise of the applications and crosschecking for applicants with multiple applications through both physical and electronic submissions.
"The Panel will thereafter proceed to shortlist applicants for the positions of Chairperson and Members of the IEBC," he said.
Thereafter, the chair noted, the longlist and shortlist of applicants will be published in the local dailies, the Kenya Gazette and on the Parliamentary Service Commission website to give members of the public an opportunity to submit memoranda to the panel on any information of interest concerning the suitability of the shortlisted nominees as part of the public participation process, as required by the law.
"The shortlisted applicants shall also be notified, through the local dailies, of the date, time and venue of the scheduled psychometric and oral interviews that will be conducted in public," he added.
He affirmed that the selection panel was committed to conducting the recruitment exercise in an impartial, fair and transparent manner.
"I want to take this opportunity to thank all Kenyans who have shown their interest in the positions and went ahead to apply," he added.
President William Ruto last month declared seven vacancies at the IEBC following the retirement of Chebukati and commissioners Abdi Guliye and Boya Molu on January 17.
Commissioners Juliana Cherera, Francis Wanderi and Justus Nyang'aya resigned while Irene Masit was sacked by the President following recommendations by a tribunal led by Justice Aggrey Muchelule.
The four commissioners were accused of gross misconduct and abuse of office after rejecting presidential results announced by Chebukati on August 15, 2022, citing "opaqueness" in the final tally.
Cherera, Wanderi and Nyang'aya opted to resign rather than face the tribunal.
However, opposition leader Raila Odinga is opposed to the recruitment of the new IEBC commissioners on grounds that the probe against the four former commissioners was politically instigated.
