By Our Reporter
INTERNATIONAL
Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga maintained a narrow lead over Deputy President William Ruto in the latest opinion poll before next month’s election.
About 42% of sampled voters favored Odinga, compared with 39% for Ruto, according to a report published by Nairobi-based pollster Tifa Research on Monday, 11th July, 2022.
That compares with 39% and 35% for the two candidates respectively in the previous survey in May. The portion of undecided respondents dropped to 10% in June from 15% previously.
Support for Kenya’s opposition leader has grown since the start of 2022
Source: Tifa Research
Note: June survey had 1,533 respondents
Tifa Research’s report comes after the front-runners in the Aug. 9 vote presented their campaign manifestos. Odinga has touted an economic plan that includes potentially restructuring government debt and providing a monthly cash transfer to the poorest households, while Ruto has proposed providing soft loans to small businesses in industries that are able to create the most jobs, such as farming.
Whoever wins the election will have to contend with an economy struggling to recover from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic and the fastest increase in consumer prices since 2017 that’s been exacerbated by the war in Ukraine and the worst drought in four decades. The World Bank expects economic growth in Kenya to slow to 5.5% this year from 7.5% in 2021.
To win the election and succeed outgoing President Uhuru Kenyatta, the candidates need to secure more than 50% of the national vote and at least a quarter of the ballots cast in half of Kenya’s 47 counties.
