EXPLAINER : Key timelines culminating in swearing-in of Kenya's next President

The electioneering period is not yet over. There are some key timelines left, culminating in the swearing of the president.

Now, let’s assume a few different scenarios. If there will be no petition filed at the Supreme Court challenging the outcome of the presidential election, then the president-elect will be sworn in on the 30th of August. This is the first Tuesday following the fourteenth day after the date of the declaration of the result of the presidential election.

Now, after that declaration of the final result of the presidential election, anyone who feels aggrieved can challenge it at the supreme court of Kenya. This is outlined in article 140 of the Constitution. This must be done within 7 days after the declaration of the presidential result.

This means the deadline to file any such petition is on the 22nd of August. The Registrar of the Supreme Court recently issued a statement saying that it should be done by 2pm on that day.

Now, let’s work with the outer limits here and assume the petition or petitions, is filed by the last day, that is the 22nd. Within 14 days after the filing of the petition, the supreme court shall hear and determine the case, and its decision is final.

It is during this 14-day period that the many processes such as serving respondents, respondents filing their responses to the petition, rejoinders, third party applications, you will remember terms like amicus curiae, or friends of the court, pre-trial conference where the rules of engagement for the proceedings are set out and then, of course, the hearing and the determination of the suit itself.

All of this happening in 14 days. So that we will get their final verdict on the 5th of September.

If the Supreme Court upholds the election and contends that Dr. William Ruto was validly elected,  then he would be sworn in on the first Tuesday following the seventh day following the date on which the court renders a decision declaring the election to be valid.

If on the other hand, the Supreme Court of Kenya nullifies the presidential election, they will order a repeat election within 60 days from the date they render their decision. That means we could go back to the polls on the 4th of November for a fresh presidential election.

The winner of this process would then be sworn in on the 22nd of November, once again on the first Tuesday after 14 days following the declaration of the result.

That swearing-in process is what gives the president-elect full powers to act as president of the republic and commander-in-chief. The swearing-in of the president is done in public before the chief justice, or in their absence, the deputy chief justice.

Article 141 detailing the assumption of office of the president states that the president-elect assumes office by taking and subscribing to the oath or affirmation of allegiance, and the oath or affirmation for the execution of the functions of the office.