Ruto Declared Kenya President-Elect as Officials Dispute Outcome
- President-elect has pledged to rein in state debt, create jobs
- Chaos erupts before announcement of official results
William Ruto, newly-elected president of Kenya, addresses the nation on Aug. 15.
Photographer: Michele Spatari/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
William Ruto was declared the winner of Kenya’s presidential election by a razor-thin margin after seeing off a challenge from five-time contender Raila Odinga, whose campaign officials and supporters rejected the official results.
Ruto, 55, garnered 50.5% or 7.1 million of the valid votes cast on Aug. 9, and his main rival Odinga 48.9%, the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission said at a ceremony in the capital Nairobi, on Monday. Ruto has pledged to rein in debt, spend 500 billion shillings ($4.1 billion) to support entrepreneurs and farmers, create jobs for millions of unemployed youths and give half the posts in his cabinet to women.