Candidate Registration System and Results Transmission System on Credibility of the Electoral System in Kenya

Abstract

In a multi-party democracy, it is expected from both the elected and appointed government officials at all levels of the political system to render periodic accounts of their stewardship to the population. There has been recurring post-election violence in Kenya due to disputed elections. The announcement of the disputed 2007 presidential election results in Kenya on December 27th, 2007 led to what could be described as the worst political crisis in Kenyan post- colonial history. This study was guided by the following specific objectives; to assess the effect of Candidate Registration System (CRS) on the credibility of the Electoral System in Nairobi County and to evaluate the effect of Results Transmission System (RTS) on the credibility of the Electoral System in Nairobi County. The study was anchored on Technology Acceptance Theory and employed a descriptive research design. The target population was 2,251,929 registered voters in Nairobi County and 40 Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission, technical officials. A sample size of 351 respondents was used determined using Fisher’s (2007) formula. Primary data for this study was collected using structured questionnaires. The analysis involved both descriptive statistics and inferential statistics. The inferential results showed a positive correlation of (r=0.554, p=0.000) between Candidate Registration System (CRS) and credibility of electoral systems. Findings on Results Transmission System (RTS) and credibility of electoral systems showed a positive correlation of (r=0.648, p=0.000). Furthermore there was a significant effect between Candidate Registration System (CRS) and credibility of electoral systems (β=.152, p=0.000), and on Results Transmission System (RTS) and credibility of electoral systems (β=.155, p=0.000). The study concluded that Candidate Registration System (CRS) and Results Transmission System (RTS) are critical in producing high-quality, tamper- resistant voter ID cards and electoral results. The study recommends that there should be adequate policy and strict protocols for supervision, management, transmission and storage of electoral data.