Speaking on Citizen TV’s Daybreak on Tuesday, Shollei opined that the mini polls offer the new team an opportunity to strengthen operations, gain practical experience and identify areas of improvement ahead of the 2027 general elections.
“We have a new IEBC, a new set of commissioners. I think by-elections are a good way of actually testing the new commissioners and also for them it’s a learning experience,” Shollei stated.
Boss praised the current IEBC for fining two Kasipul parliamentary by-election candidates Ksh. 1 million each, and compelled them to sign a peace agreement after violence between their supporters led to the death of two people.
“During my time, it happened when we had the Makadara elections, when Mike Sonko vied for the first time. We had the same situation. And we said to them, we’re going to cancel the elections if we hear any more violence,” she stated.
“It is your responsibility to ensure that your supporters are not violent. And the moment you do that, it changes the game.”
She dismissed claims that the elections are vulnerable to rigging, arguing that critics do not understand how the current system functions.
She explained that KIEMS kits are geo-mapped and cannot be used outside their assigned polling stations, while biometric identification prevents the possibility of impersonation or multiple voting. She added that all voter identification and result entries are verified by party agents.
“If you don’t have fingers, you still have the pupil of your eye, you still have your facial features, to use that as an identification. It has to be confirmed by all the agents when that is done, and it has to be noted in the book,” Shollei said.
“So, actually, Kenya has the safest electoral system.”
The Deputy Speaker further highlighted the transparency created by QR-coded results forms and ballot papers, which are scanned and uploaded to the public portal immediately after the counting process. According to her, this enabled the public and the media to independently tally the results during the last general election, even before official announcements.
On November 27, a total of 24 elections will take place across the country, including one Senate seat in Baringo County, six parliamentary seats and 17 MCA positions. The constituencies voting for new MPs include Kasipul, Mbeere North, Ugunja, Magarini, Banissa and Malava.
