The President also challenged opposition leaders to focus on issues affecting young people instead of engaging in political battles

President William Ruto attends an interdenominational church service at St Joseph’s Seminary in Mwingi Central, Kitui county on October 25, 2026./PCS

President William Ruto has accused opposition leaders of spreading falsehoods over proposed changes to the law governing the livestreaming of election results.

The President insisted that the government has no intention of stopping Kenyans from accessing election outcomes.

Speaking during a church service at AIC Kasina in Mwingi, Ruto dismissed claims that livestreaming of results had been banned, describing them as propaganda and fake news.

“Opposition leaders have started creating another propaganda that livestreaming of election results has been banned,” Ruto said.

“Nonsense, propaganda, fake news. Why would anyone want to stop livestreaming of results? The sooner Kenyans get to know the results of an election, the better for our nation.”

“I am asking those leaders who are really bankrupt of ideas and whose only business with young people is to misuse them, please, let us have better engagement with young people of Kenya,” he said.

Ruto said young people were more concerned about access to education, employment and business opportunities, urging leaders to work together to harness their skills and potential.

“The young people of Kenya want education, they want jobs, they want opportunities to do business. We should harness the talent, energy and knowledge of young people,” he said.

The debate over livestreaming follows the passage of the Elections (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill, 2024, by the National Assembly. The Bill seeks to amend Section 39 of the Elections Act, which governs the determination, transmission and declaration of election results.

Among the contentious proposals is the removal of the legal requirement for the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) to livestream results as they are announced at polling stations.

The Bill was approved by the Senate in December 2024 before being forwarded to the National Assembly, where the proposed changes have attracted opposition over their potential implications for electoral transparency and public scrutiny ahead of the 2027 General Election.

Removing the specific legal requirement would mean the IEBC would no longer be compelled under that provision to livestream results from polling stations.

However, it would not automatically prohibit the commission from livestreaming the announcements voluntarily.

The controversy has placed the transmission and public accessibility of election results at the centre of preparations for the 2027 polls, with questions emerging over how the proposed changes could affect public confidence in the electoral process.