President of Kenya

The President of the Republic of Kenya (Swahili: Rais wa Jamhuri ya Kenya) is the head of state and head of government of Kenya. The president leads the executive branch of the Government of Kenya. The president is the commander-in-chief of the Kenya Defence Forces. The first president of Kenya was Jomo Kenyatta. Now the president is William Ruto.

President of the
Republic of Kenya
Coat of arms of Kenya
Presidential Standard
Incumbent
William Ruto

since 13 September 2022
StyleHis Excellency
(formal)
ResidenceState House, Nairobi
AppointerDirect popular vote
Term lengthFive years
renewable
Inaugural holderJomo Kenyatta
12 December 1964
Websitestatehousekenya.go.ke

Role

Under the 1964 Constitutional Amendment establishing the Republic of Kenya, the President replaced the Monarch as head of state and the Prime Minister as chief executive. The President was initially elected by the House of Representatives of Kenya, and, after the merger of the House of Representatives and Senate into a unicameral National Assembly, by the National Assembly, for a five-year term. In the event of a vacancy the Vice-President would have served as Acting President for 90 days until new elections were held.

Following the enactment of the 1969 Constitution of Kenya, the system of election by the National Assembly was replaced by direct elections under a first-past-the-post system, yet true separation of powers was still not established; The President had to also be elected as an MP and he had to appoint his Ministers from among MPs, the President was still able to dissolve the National Assembly, and the Assembly was still able to declare no confidence in the ministers. Not only that, but until the first multiparty elections in 1992, only one candidate - that of the Kenya African National Union - was nominated and automatically declared winner of the elections without voting actually being held.

With the enactment of the 2010 Constitution, Kenya's current, the first-past-the-post system was replaced in presidential elections in favor of a two-round system, the post of Vice-President was renamed Deputy President and was made to automatically succeed to the Presidency in case of a vacancy for the remainder of the term in a full, not merely acting, capacity, and the requirement of the President, DP, and ministers to also be MPs was abolished, finally establishing separation of powers between the executive and legislature.

Presidents of Kenya (1964 – present)

    KANU     NARC/PNU     Jubilee

Picture Name Tenure Election Affiliation
1 Jomo Kenyatta 12 December1964 6 December1969 1964 KANU
6 December1969 14 October1974 1969
14 October1974 22 August1978 (Died in Office) 1974
2 Daniel Arap Moi 22 August

1978 1979

26 September1983 1979 KANU
26 September1983 21 March1988 1983
21 March1988 29 December1992 1988
29 December1992 29 December1997 1992 KANU
29 December1997 29 December2002 1997
3 Mwai Kibaki 29 December2002 29 December2007 2002 NARC
30 December2007 3 April2013 2007 PNU
4 Uhuru Kenyatta 4 April2013 4 April 2014

2013

2013 The National Alliance
5 William Ruto 4 April 2014 7 September 2014 The National Alliance
4 Uhuru Kenyatta 7 September 2014 13 September 2022 2017 Jubilee Party
(5) William Ruto 13 September 2022 Incumbent 2022 United Democratic Alliance

Other websites

Media related to Presidents of Kenya at Wikimedia Commons


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