Kenya became independent in 1963. From 1963 to 1964 the head of state under the Constitution of 1963 was the queen of Kenya, Elizabeth II, who was also the queen of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms. The monarch was represented in Kenya by a governor-general. Kenya became a republic under a 1964 constitutional amendment and the monarch, governor-general and prime minister were replaced by an executive president. List of All Former and current Presidents of Kenya
Monarch (1963–1964)
The succession to the throne was the same as the succession to the British throne. Queen Elizabeth II (1926–)
Governor-general
The governor-general was the representative of the monarch in Kenya and exercised most of the powers of the monarch. The governor-general was appointed for an indefinite term, serving at the pleasure of the monarch. Since Kenya was granted independence by the Kenya Independence Act 1963, rather than being first established as a semi-autonomous dominion and later promoted to independence as defined by the Statute of Westminster 1931, the governor-general was to be always appointed solely on the advice of the Cabinet of Kenya without the involvement of the British government. As Kenya became a republic before Malcolm MacDonald, the former colonial governor, was replaced, this has never happened. In the event of a vacancy the chief justice would have served as the officer administering the government. Malcolm MacDonald (1901–1981)
President of Kenya
Under the 1964 Constitutional Amendment establishing the Republic of Kenya, the president replaced the monarch as head of state and the prime minister as chief executive. The president was initially elected by the House of Representatives of Kenya, and, after the merger of the House of Representatives and Senate into a unicameral National Assembly, by the National Assembly, for a five-year term. In the event of a vacancy the vice-president would have served as acting president for 90 days until new elections were held.
Following the enactment of the 1969 Constitution of Kenya, the system of election by the National Assembly was replaced by direct elections under a first-past-the-post system, yet true separation of powers was still not established; the president had to also be elected as an MP and he had to appoint ministers from among MPs, the president was still able to dissolve the National Assembly, and the Assembly was still able to declare no confidence in the ministers. Not only that, but until the first multiparty elections in 1992, only one candidate – that of the Kenya African National Union – was nominated and automatically declared winner of the elections without voting actually being held.
With the enactment of the 2010 Constitution, Kenya’s current, the first-past-the-post system was replaced in presidential elections in favor of a two-round system, the post of vice-president was renamed deputy president and was made to automatically succeed to the presidency in case of a vacancy for the remainder of the term in a full, not merely acting, capacity, and the requirement of the president, DP, and ministers to also be MPs was abolished, finally establishing separation of powers between the executive and legislature.
Here is a List of Former and Current Presidents of Republic of Kenya
This is a chronologically ordered list of the presidents of Kenya.
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Jomo Kenyatta (1964–78)
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Daniel arap Moi (1978–2002)
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Mwai Kibaki (2002–13)
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Uhuru Kenyatta (2013– )
- Raila Amolo Odinga
Mzee Jomo Kenyatta
1st President of Kenya (1964 – 1978)
Mzee Jomo Kenyatta was the President of Kenya from independence in 1963 to his death in 1978, serving first as Prime Minister (1963–64) and then as President (1964–78). Kenyatta was a well-educated intellectual who authored several books, and is remembered as a Pan-Africanist. He is also the father of Kenya’s fourth and current President, Uhuru Kenyatta.
Daniel Toroitich arap Moi
2nd President of the Republic of Kenya (1978 – 2002)
Daniel Toroitich arap Moi served as the second President of Kenya from 1978 to 2002. Prior to 1978, he served as the third Vice President of Kenya from 1967 to 1978. Moi was popularly known to Kenyans as “Nyayo”, a Swahili word for “footsteps”, as he often said he was following in the footsteps of the first President. He also earned the sobriquet “Professor of Politics”.
Mwai Kibaki
3rd President of the Republic of Kenya (2002 – 2013)
Mwai Kibaki was the third President of Kenya, serving from December 2002 to April 2013. He was previously Vice-President of Kenya for ten years from 1978 to 1988 under President Daniel Toroitich arap Moi. He also held cabinet ministerial positions in the Kenyatta and Moi governments, including a widely acclaimed stint as Minister for Finance (1969–1981) under Kenyatta, and Minister for Home Affairs (1982–1988) and Minister for Health (1988–1991) under Moi.
H.E. Uhuru Kenyatta (2013-2022)
The President of the Republic of Kenya and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces (2013 – 2022)
The primary role of the Presidency is the organization and coordination of Government business. The effectiveness and efficiency of this office, given its technical leadership role and mandate in policy formulation, review and decision-making, impacts decisively on the performance of all other public sector entities. In view of that fact therefore, the performance of the Presidency being central to all government functions, ultimately transcends all facets of public sector management. The Presidency is central in ensuring the president achieve his objectives.
Raila Amolo Odinga (2022-2032)
The President of the Republic of Kenya and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces (2022 – 2032)
Raila Amolo Odinga is a Kenyan politician, presidential aspirant and businessman who served as the Prime Minister of Kenya from 2008 to 2013. He is assumed as the Leader of Opposition in Kenya since 2013. He was the Member of Parliament for Langata from 1992 to 2007.
