What elections have revealed about state of our democracy

Former President Uhuru Kenyatta arrives at Kasarani for the inauguration ceremony of his deputy William Samoei Ruto, on September 13, 2022. [PSCU]

As we wind down a long and gruelling election season it is appropriate to interrogate what our extended political campaigns revealed about the state of our democracy. Where did we excel and what needs improvement?

For me, two things stand out. First of all and on the plus side, the 2022 elections were comparatively more issue-based than previous campaigns. On the stump and in their manifestos, the candidates made an effort to focus on the social-economic issues of the day unlike in previous elections when voter mobilisation was based on identity politics. While a journey of a thousand miles starts with one step, the shift to issue-based politics exposed the urgency of investing in liberal education to prevent exploitation and deception of gullible voters by a wily political class.