Following President William Samoei Ruto’s appointment of Erastus Edung Ethekon as the new Chairperson of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), the new chair will now take over the electoral body for a six year term in accordance with Article 250(2) of the Constitution and the IEBC Act.

The new IEBC Chair’s biggest test to come is the highly anticipated 2027 general elections.‎‎Ethekon’s appointment was officially formalized through a Gazette Notice dated June 10, 2025 after a long period of uncertainty around the electoral body since it’s former chair Wafula Chebukati’s term ended alongside other commissioners leaving it without any commissioner or chair untill this appointment.‎‎‎

Mr. Ethekon appointment comes alongside appointment of six new commissioners namely; Ann Njeri Nderitu, Moses Alutalala Mukhwana, Mary Karen Sorobit, Hassan Noor Hassan, Francis Odhiambo Aduol, and Fahima Araphat Abdallah.

‎‎Some of the immediate issues the new chair and his team of commissioners will immediately start working on include a few by-elections, constituency boundary reviews and other reforms that intend to restore public’s trust in the electoral body.‎‎

This appointment comes a after a series of court battles which included at some point the high court issuing a conservatory order blocking the National Assembly from vetting and appointing the President’s appointees to the Independent Boundaries Commission (IEBC).

Activists Boniface Mwangi and Kelvin Roy Omondi are among those who had sought to stop the swearing in of the new appointees.

With the appointment now confirmed a lot of Kenyans have high hopes in the newly constituted IEBC to implement robust reforms that will deliver credible elections in 2027. As he assumes office, Kenyans will be closely watching Ethekon’s next moves.