The Kenyan Elections of 2007: An Introduction

Introduction: Kenya – A democracy in retreat?

“…Cheeseman (2008) identifies four of these features. First, Odinga's signing of a Memorandum of Understanding with representatives of the Muslim community for the first time in Kenyan elections turned religion into a mobilising issue, manipulated by both the ODM and PNU in their attempts to win the hearts and minds of both Christians and Muslims.…”

Does Moderation Pay? Centripetalism in Deeply Divided Societies

“…The election saw Kibaki return to power under suspicious circumstances-not only did pre-election polling give the advantage to Odinga, but also there were accusations of electoral fraud, and the electoral commission showed little transparency in the tabulation of votes (Cheeseman, 2008). The announcement of Kibaki's victory, as well as his quick swearing-in, angered many and triggered 2 months of violence in which more than 1,000 people were killed and 600,000 were displaced; much of the violence was directed at Kikuyus, Kibaki's ethnic group.…”

The Role of Information and Communication Technology in Preventing Election-Related Violence in Kenya, 2013

“…Leading up to the Kenyan presidential elections of 2013, observers around the world were preoccupied by the specter of renewed mass violence akin to that which erupted following the 2007 presidential election, which resulted in the deaths of more than 1,000 persons and the displacement of hundreds of thousands more in the weeks following the election (Barkan 2013;BBC 2008;Cheeseman 2008). Yet, in spite of confirmed irregularities in and heated political disputes over the 2013 elections, there was no mass surge in violence.…”