Malava: David Athman Ndakwa of the ruling United Democratic Alliance (UDA) has been declared the winner of the Malava Constituency Member of Parliament-elect after garnering 21,564 votes against his closest rival Seth Panyako of Democratic Action Party-Kenya (DAP-K), who secured 20,210 votes.
According to Kenya News Agency, Malava Constituency Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission returning officer Salim Abdalla declared Ndakwa as the winner in the closely contested election, which recorded a voter turnout of 43,673 out of 94,417 registered voters, representing about 46 percent turnout.
Earlier, there was a delay in announcing the results after Democracy for the Citizen Party Deputy Leader Cleophas Malala demanded a recount when the UDA party candidate was leading with 21,455 votes. The Returning Officer conceded to the verbal request and was ready to conduct the recount, but by then, the complainant had already left the hall.
Regarding another request by the DAP-K chief agent for a recount, Abdalla stated that this could not be done as it would be an illegality. “Once the boxes are sealed at the polling station, they can only be opened through a court process,” he declared.
Speaking after being awarded the winning certificate, the MP-elect thanked the people of Malava and the Party Leader of UDA, President William Ruto, for the confidence they have in him. He extended an olive branch to his competitors to work together to serve the interests of Malava.
He called for unity of purpose amongst all people, including his opponents, and promised to be a servant leader and complete all projects initiated by the late MP Malulu Injendi. “I will listen to you and take in your views since you have exercised your democratic space, and for now, let’s focus on development matters since another election will only come in 2027,” he added.
In the by-election, which attracted nine candidates, James Shinachi Angatia received 243 votes, Bruce Jason Shivakale had 390 votes, Job Burudi Manyasi managed 70 votes, and Edgar Busiega Mwanga got 209 votes. Others included Benjamin Malwa with 215 votes, George Ngaira Oyugi with 148 votes, and Wilberforce Indai Tuvei, who garnered 626 votes.
