Elisha Oraro has been elected the Speaker of the Kisumu County Assembly.
Oraro was on Tuesday afternoon declared the winner of the speaker race was after round two of voting.
In the first round of voting, there was no clear winner as neither Oraro nor Ong’ow attained the two-thirds majority.
Oraro got 24 votes out of the maximum 47, while Ong’ow got 23 votes.
The winning candidate was required to garner 32 votes in the first round of voting to be declared the winner.
Round two
In the second round Oraro garnered 25 votes against Ong’ow’s 22 votes to win the race.
Oraro overcame a tough competition from Ong’ow after he had been fronted by the ODM party.
ODM leader Raila Odinga arrived in Kisumu on Monday evening to meet the MCAs in bid to rally support for Oraro.
Other candidates who were eying the seat included; James Ochieng and Kenneth Amondi.
Oraro will now be serving his second term as Kisumu County Government’s third most powerful man.
Assembly Clerk Owen Ojuok presided over the proceedings of the house during the swearing-in of the 47 MCAs and the election of the Speaker.
Lobbying
Prior to the vote, Ong’ow had rallied the support of members to go against the will of the ODM party.
Only 25 out of 47 MCA elect in Kisumu County attended the induction ceremony at the assembly on Monday September, 19th.
Sources claim that the 22 MCAs who did not attend the induction process were on the same team and were supporting Ong’ow for the speaker’s seat.
The County Assembly Standing Orders provide that a person shall not be elected Speaker unless supported in a ballot by the votes of two-thirds of the 47 members of the House.
If no candidate garners two-thirds, the candidate who received the highest number of votes in the ballot and the candidate or candidates who in that ballot received the next highest number of votes shall then go into a run-off.
The candidate who receives the highest number of votes carries the day.
Immediately following the election of the Speaker, the clerk administers the Oath or Affirmation of Office to the Speaker in the presence of the lawmakers.
The Standing Orders provide that a Speaker shall be elected when the House first meets after a General Election and that before the House proceeds with the dispatch of any other business, except the administration of the Oath or Affirmation of Office to MCAs-elect present.
Oraro was sworn in at 3:20 pm on Tuesday.
What next for the assembly?
The Speaker race seems to have split the assembly in the middle, with only 25 out of the 47 MCAs voting for Oraro.
And as he settles down to work, it remains to be seen how Oraro will steer the divided house.
Out of 47 MCAs, ODM party has 46. It will be interesting to see how those who opposed Oraro will continue dissenting, or join the winning team to champion the party’s agenda in the house.
