Kenya: Opposition leader Raila Odinga leads the presidential race, according to partial results

by Katharine Houreld

NAIROBI (Reuters) – Opposition leader Raila Odinga came out on top in Kenya’s presidential race, according to partial election results on Saturday, relegating Vice President William Ruto to second place.

After counting just over 26% of the ballots, Raila Odinga obtained 54% of the vote and William Ruto 45%, according to the results provided by the Kenyan electoral commission and displayed on a giant screen in a national counting center located in the capital, Nairobi.

Incumbent President Uhuru Kenyatta, who cannot stand for re-election after reaching the two-term limit, has backed Raila Odinga, 77, a former prime minister and current opposition leader.

William Ruto, 55, was deputy head of state for the past nine years before a feud between them.

Kenyans were called to the polls on Tuesday for parliamentary and presidential elections seen as a major test for the stability of East Africa’s biggest economy, where two of the last three polls have sparked waves of violence against a backdrop of fraud charges.

The electoral commission responsible for supervising these elections has until Tuesday to declare a winner.

(Report Katharine Houreld, French version Jean-Michel Bélot)