This paper studies the microeconomic impacts of the political crisis and civil con ‡ict that immediately followed the December 2007 Presidential Election in Kenya. Income, expenditures, and consumption dramatically declined for a broad segment of the rural population for the duration of the con ‡ict. To make up for the income shortfall, women who supply transactional sex engaged in higher risk sex both during and after the crisis. While this particular crisis was likely too short for these behavioral responses to seriously increase the risk of HIV or other STIs for these women, such responses could have long-term repercussions for health in countries with longer or more frequent crises. Overall, our results suggest that social unrest can be an important channel through which political instability can a¤ect long-term outcomes such as health.