KISUMU, 23rd April 2026–The ruling United Democratic Alliance (UDA) party grassroots elections proceeded smoothly across several counties on Thursday, with Kisumu recording an orderly exercise marked by high voter enthusiasm and minimal disruptions.
By midday, turnout had already reached an impressive 75 percent in parts of the region, according to Halake Dida, a member of the party’s National Elections Board overseeing the polls in the four Nyanza counties.
“The process began on time at 8 a.m and I am pleased with the organization so far. This level of participation is very encouraging,” Dida said while supervising voting at Victoria Primary School, one of the key polling centers in the county.
He underscored the transparency and credibility of the exercise, assuring party members that no major grievances had emerged.
“No registered voter has reported missing their name from the register. This remains a free and fair election,” he added.
With 761 polling centers spread across Kisumu County, voting proceeded largely without incident. At Nyalunya Primary School in Kisumu East constituency, George Ayugi, a candidate for county chairman, cast his ballot and noted that early logistical hitches had been resolved.
“There were initial challenges in areas like Muhoroni and Kisumu West, where some ID numbers were not captured by the KIEMS kits, but those issues have since been fixed. The process is now running perfectly,” Ayugi said.
In a significant shift from traditional party polls, UDA has fully embraced technology to manage the elections.
Dida explained that once voting closed at 5 p.m., and the system will automatically collate results and declare winners, eliminating the need for a physical tallying center.
At Victoria Primary School, aspirant Beatrice Amondi expressed confidence in the outcome after casting her vote.
She lauded the peaceful atmosphere and seamless conduct of the exercise.
“There has been no chaos or confusion. This shows the party is well organized. The large turnout also proves that Kenyans believe in UDA as the ruling party and are eager to exercise their democratic rights,” Amondi said.
As voting continued until 5 p.m., the exercise remained above board marking a major step in UDA’s ongoing grassroots leadership restructuring.
