Kenyan presidential result annulled by supreme court

Surprise cancellation of Kenyatta victory welcomed by Odinga supporters.
Kenya's supreme court has annulled the result of the country's contentious presidential election, citing irregularities by the electoral commission, and ordering a re-run within 60 days.
The 1 September ruling - seen by many as a surprise - follows a legal challenge from opposition candidate Raila Odinga who alleged that Kenya's new electronic system for transmitting election results was rigged to return incumbent president Uhuru Kenyatta to power for a second five-year term.
Odinga, of the National Super Alliance (NASA), lost the two-horse presidential election to Kenyatta, of the multi-party Jubilee Alliance, by a margin of 1.4 million votes. Odinga, who has four consecutive presidential election defeats under his belt, welcomed the court's "historic" verdict which makes Kenya the first African nation to have a presidential poll invalidated by a court. A legal representative for Kenyatta described the supreme court ruling as "very political" but said the decision must be respected.
The six-judge panel ruled four to two that the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IBEC) had failed to conduct the election "in accordance with the constitution." However the court found no misconduct on behalf of Kenyatta, who had been re-elected with 54 per cent of the vote against Odinga's 44 per cent. Details of its ruling will be published within 21 days.
Ahead of the ruling on 1 September security was increased in Odinga strongholds following recent isolated protests which claimed the lives of at least 24 people. Kenya has a history of post-electoral violence, particularly following the 2007 polls when an estimated 1,100 people were killed and hundreds of thousands displaced across the country.