Human rights advocate Ndegwa Njiru has strongly rejected calls by Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi to hold the next general election and a constitutional referendum on the same day.

In a statement shared on X on Sunday, December 28, 2025, Njiru said consitution only recognises the general election on every second Tuesday in August every fifth year statitng that any proposal to run an election with a referendum on the same day is unconstitutional.

“On every second Tuesday in August every fifth year, our Constitution recognises only one event, the General Election. Any proposal to run this election concurrently with a referendum is a pipe dream that can only take place within the confined territory of Mululu, and not in the liberal Kenya,” Njiru said

Njiru’s remarks come amid ongoing debate over the possibility of merging the 2027 general election with a referendum on the Constitution, a move Mudavadi has suggested as a way to streamline the country’s electoral processes and reduce costs. Njiru, however, was clear that such a plan would not align with Kenya’s constitutional framework.

He emphasised the importance of respecting the Constitution’s timeline for elections, noting that the law is explicit about the General Election occurring every five years on the second Tuesday of August. Any attempt to alter this schedule or combine it with another nationwide vote, he argued, could create legal and logistical challenges.

Mudavadi’s call for same day referendum-2027 General election

 According to Mudavadi, since Kenyans will already be going to the ballot to elect the six elective positions, a seventh question should be placed on a separate ballot, just like the six elective slots, to allow citizens to vote on key constitutional issues that have bedevilled the country for a long time.

“But we have an opportunity to correct some things, in my view, and this perhaps is the better time where we can introduce some referendum issues to this election,” Mudavadi said.

Mudavadi stated that holding the referendum alongside the 2027 general election would help save on costs that would otherwise be incurred if it were conducted separately.