Waziri Mayai Wa Maradhi
Member
- Jan 28, 2026
- 81
- 36
After the 2007 bloody elections, the country was not ready for someone from the big tribes to lead contentious institutions like the IEBC.
Into this void stepped the Somalis, who were seen as neutral arbiters.
One of the first major Somalis to fill this gap was Isaac Hassan, who became the chairperson of the Interim Independent Electoral Commission and later the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission.
His appointment was part of a deliberate post-crisis strategy to restore public confidence after the collapse of trust that followed the post-election violence.
Hassan’s leadership symbolized ethnic balance, institutional sobriety, and a break from the partisan rivalries that had poisoned Kenya’s electoral process, placing him at the center of one of the most sensitive state functions in the reform era.
Following his stewardship of the 2013 general elections and his eventual exit from the IEBC , Isaac Hassan transitioned back into public service through the judiciary, culminating in his elevation to the Court of Appeal.
Into this void stepped the Somalis, who were seen as neutral arbiters.
One of the first major Somalis to fill this gap was Isaac Hassan, who became the chairperson of the Interim Independent Electoral Commission and later the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission.
His appointment was part of a deliberate post-crisis strategy to restore public confidence after the collapse of trust that followed the post-election violence.
Hassan’s leadership symbolized ethnic balance, institutional sobriety, and a break from the partisan rivalries that had poisoned Kenya’s electoral process, placing him at the center of one of the most sensitive state functions in the reform era.
Following his stewardship of the 2013 general elections and his eventual exit from the IEBC , Isaac Hassan transitioned back into public service through the judiciary, culminating in his elevation to the Court of Appeal.
