IEBC’s 2027 Election plan: 9,164 more polling stations and 6.3 million new voters

Kenya's next General Election is scheduled for August 10, 2027, and the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission is preparing for a substantially larger electorate.

An IEBC planning document presented to Parliament projects 55,393 polling stations, up from the 46,229 used in the 2022 election.

The difference is 9,164 additional stations.

The commission's projected voter register stands at 28.63 million, compared with the existing register of about 22.3 million.

It is seeking to register a further 6.3 million voters before the poll.

These are planning targets, not a final list of newly established stations.

The locations will be determined after the voter-registration exercise, according to the number of eligible voters in different areas and the distance people must travel to vote.

The 700-voter limit

Under Section 38A of the Elections Act, a polling station should not have more than 700 registered voters.

The statutory limit is intended to support the efficient conduct of elections.

IEBC wants the law amended to permit up to 1,000 voters per station, arguing that a higher threshold would give it more flexibility in organising the election.

The Senate approved the proposal in December 2024, but the National Assembly has resisted it.

The Assembly's Justice and Legal Affairs Committee has indicated that it wants the existing 700-voter ceiling retained, raising concerns about queues, access and the risk of voters being unable to cast ballots.

As of October 12, the proposed change had not become law.

The current legal limit remains 700, so the commission's preparations must account for that rule unless Parliament amends it.

The disagreement also affects the number of stations and election technology needed.

A higher limit could reduce the number of locations required, while retaining 700 means more stations may be necessary as the register grows.

Allocation of new polling stations

IEBC chairperson Erastus Ethekon says the commission will map additional stations to locations where the existing voter population exceeds the statutory threshold.

Distance and the need to bring polling places closer to voters will also be considered.

The expansion will not necessarily be distributed evenly across counties.

Areas registering more new voters, or where existing stations exceed the limit, could require more locations than areas with smaller electorates.

IEBC is also revising how it calculates registration targets.

Instead of relying mainly on census-based estimates of the population likely to be 18 by election day, it is increasingly using records from the National Registration Bureau and Directorate of Immigration Services on identity cards and passports issued.

The approach aims to focus resources on people more likely to meet the legal requirements for registration.

Registering the next generation of voters

Continuous voter registration is expected to continue at all 290 constituency offices.

The commission also plans additional registration drives, including services at Huduma Centres and institutions of higher learning, as well as registration for eligible Kenyans living abroad.

The voter register is due for verification six months before the General Election.

That exercise will help identify errors and establish the list of eligible voters ahead of polling day.

IEBC estimates it will need 59,959 Kenya Integrated Election Management System (KIEMS) kits to support election operations, including 3,959 reserved for training constituency election officials.

What voters should watch

More polling stations could reduce travel distances and improve access, but the projected total does not guarantee shorter queues in every constituency.

The outcome will depend on final station mapping, voter registration, staffing, technology and the implementation of the law.

For Kenyans approaching voting age, the immediate priority is to obtain the required identification document and register through an official IEBC channel.

For the commission, the test is whether it can turn the projected 28.63-million electorate into a verified register and ensure that the locations, personnel and technology are ready for August 2027.