• Preliminary results show a close presidential election between William Ruto and Raila Odinga.
• Local tallies of raw data reveal nothing divides the two, with more than 90% of results recorded.
• Turnout is expected to be about 60%, significantly below the 80% recorded in 2009.

Preliminary results in Kenya reveal a close presidential election between Deputy President William Ruto and former Prime Minister Raila Odinga.

Local tallies of raw data reveal nothing divides the two, with more than 90% of results recorded from thousands of individual districts.

However, the official outcome may not be available for many days.

This election comes after a heated campaign characterised by discussions about living expenses, unemployment, and corruption.

Turnout is expected to be about 60%, significantly below the 80% recorded in the last election five years ago.

A mostly calm election day was marred by logistical problems and the failure of the identification kit in several areas of the nation.

Hustler vs. Baba

The two frontrunners in the presidential election are both experienced politicians.

Mr Odinga, 77, a long-serving opposition leader known to his fans as Baba (“father”), is standing for president for the sixth time. Mr Ruto, 55, is running for president for the first time, attempting to emphasise his connection with ordinary Kenyans by referring to himself as a “hustler.”

David Mwaure and George Wajackoya are two more contestants in the campaign.

After a falling out with Mr Ruto, outgoing President Uhuru Kenyatta is endorsing Mr Odinga, a rival turned friend, to replace him.

To win the presidential election in the first round, a candidate must have:

more than half of all votes cast in the nation at least 25% of votes cast in at least 24 counties
After the votes are counted, local authorities photograph the final tally sheet and submit it to both the constituency and national tallying centres.

The media, political parties, and civil society organisations have been generating their own counts based on the final results announced at almost 40,000 voting sites.

However, only the electoral commission may proclaim the presidential election winner after authenticating the physical and digital forms submitted to the national tallying centre.

It has seven days to make the announcement.

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