United Democratic Alliance (UDA) candidate Barrow Dekow Mohamed has been elected Member of Parliament for Garissa Township constituency, the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) has confirmed.

Dekow was declared the winner of Thursday’s election after garnering 11,572 votes, beating Nassir Dolal of the United Democratic Movement (UDM) party who finished second with 8,158 votes.

Narc Kenya’s Ibrahim Malow came a distant third with 840 votes.

While announcing the results of the mini-poll on Thursday night, Returning officer for Garissa Township Constituency Abdi Yunis Mohamed said a total of 21,218 votes were cast representing 39.84 per cent voter turnout.

The Returning officer for Garissa Township Constituency by-election Abdi Yunis Mohamed declares Barrow Dekow Mohamed of UDA party duly elected Garissa Township Member of National Assembly (MNA) after garnering 11,572 votes #5thJan2023byelections pic.twitter.com/kdaKSsU4Xi

— IEBC (@IEBCKenya) January 6, 2023

Dekow takes over from Duale

Dekow replaces former MP Aden Duale who was appointed Cabinet Secretary for Defence by President William Ruto in October last year.

The MP-elect enjoyed support from the seasoned politician during intense campaigns witnessed in the constituency in the last two months.

Duale formally announced his support for Dekow in late November after a series of meetings with elders drawn from his Abduwak clan.

Dolal alias Jofle, who was Dekow’s main challenger in the by-election, has contested against Duale since 2013, finishing second.

Duale retained his seat in the August polls after securing a total of 9,905 against Jofle’s 5509 votes.

Elsewhere in Elgeyo Marakwet, two candidates in the county’s Senatorial by-election race have conceded defeat before the announcement of the final results by IEBC.

Lawyer Tim Kipchumba of the Party for Peace and Development on Thursday night said he had already congratulated UDA’s candidate, William Kisang on his win.

“A few minutes to midnight yesterday, I called Senator Kisang and congratulated him. I assured him of my support as the Senator-elect of Elgeyo Marakwet,” he said.

Human rights activist and Safina candidate Jerotich Seii said: “WaKenya, those weren’t the results we had hoped for lakini asiyekubali kushindwa si mshindani. The complex world of politics isn’t for jokes,” Seii said.

Immediate former Elgeyo Marakwet Senator Kipchumba Murkomen, who was appointed to Cabinet in October last year, has also congratulated Kisang.

“Congratulations Hon. William Kisang on your election as the second Senator of Elgeyo Marakwet County. Thank you to the people of EMC for having faith in the leadership of Kenya Kwanza by voting in a UDA candidate,” Murkomen said.

He added: “To my friend Tim Kipchumba I am very confident in your present and future contributions to the community and nation-building. That was a very good fight and your time is coming.”

Congratulations Hon. William Kisang on your election as the second Senator of Elgeyo Marakwet County. Thank you to the people of EMC for having faith in the leadership of Kenya Kwanza by voting in a UDA candidate.

— KIPCHUMBA MURKOMEN, E.G.H (@kipmurkomen) January 5, 2023

Other candidates in the race were Timothy Tanui (The New Democrats), lawyer Andrew Mengich (Independent) and 27-year-old statistician Kelvin Kemboi.