The long road to institutionalization: the Kenyan Parliament and the 2013 elections

Abstract

What explains the emergence of a relatively strong legislature in Kenya in a region characterized by “rubber stamp” parliaments? And how do the results of the 2013 election affect the chances of continued strengthening and institutionalization of the Kenyan legislature? This paper addresses these questions by situating the evolution of parliamentary strength and institutionalization in Kenya in the context of the country's political history since independence. The argument advanced is that although the codification of the gains in parliamentary strength and independence only began to take place in the late 1990s, the process that led to the realization of these gains goes back to the first parliament after independence. The paper also analyzes the impact of the constitutional requirement of 50% plus one in the presidential race on party structures in different parts of the country. The findings suggest that while the 2013 elections were marked by a heightened sense of inter-regional alliance-building for the presidential race, at the sub-national level the effective number of parties increased in all regions relative to the 2007 election, with the exception of the Central Region.