Hoteliers to keep vigil for US poll Results

By Ngumbao Kithi and Karanja Njoroge

Entertainment spots and hotels in Mombasa will remain open on Tuesday night as results of the US elections trickle in.

Hoteliers at the coast said they would ensure they and their patrons keep vigil until the winner of the elections is announced.

The chairman of Kenya Association of hotelkeepers and caterers at the Coast, Mr Mohamed Hersi, said Obama would be a great challenge to Kenyan politicians who recently plunged the country in chaos in disputed results.

"Being from a minority community in the US, Obama’s possible election to the White House shows Americans maturity," he said.

Obama will win

Hersi said it was expected that the possible election of Obama to the White House would set a precedence in the World that a president should be below 50 years of age.

Meanwhile, expectations are high in Nakuru that a win by Democratic Presidential candidate Barack Obama will benefit the country and the African continent.

Most people interviewed in Nakuru town said they could not contemplate an Obama loss.

"Going by the predictions in the opinion polls, it would require a miracle for Republican candidate John McCain to beat Obama," Ms Mary Kemunto said.

Rift Valley Law Society of Kenya Branch Chairman Gordon Ogolla said Obama was poised to become the next president of the most powerful country in the world.

He said he would closely monitor the results of the election, as Obama is set to make history.