[6] On 22 August, Odinga filed a petition with the Supreme Court of Kenya challenging the results announced by Wafula Chebukati, the chairman of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission.

[29][30][31] The families of incumbent President Uhuru Kenyatta and opposition leader Raila Odinga had dominated Kenyan politics since independence in 1963.

[33] Police crackdowns on protesters and clashes that turned into ethnic attacks killed more than 1,000 people in post-election violence, eventually prompting a new constitution to devolve power.

Both Kenyatta and Ruto had been indicted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) on crimes against humanity charges for their alleged role in orchestrating the post-election violence in the 2007 election.

The cases later collapsed, with former ICC chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda saying a relentless campaign of victim and witness intimidation made the trial impossible.

The two leaders also sought to expand the executive through the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) constitutional changes, which would have potentially allowed Kenyatta to stay in power as a prime minister.

But despite the Supreme Court of Kenya ruling against the proposed amendments in August, the unexpected alliance has persevered, with Odinga attending official government functions with Kenyatta.

[32] In January 2022, Ruto's United Democratic Alliance (UDA) announced a coalition pact with the Amani National Congress, FORD–Kenya and several other political parties.

[39] In February 2022, Kenyatta's Jubilee party announced that it would join the Azimio la Umoja coalition headed by Odinga, the leader of the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM).

[55] The manifesto came in the form of a declaration and promised to strengthen devolution; economically empower women; waste no single child; spur the economic pillar; facilitate climate-smart agriculture; revamp the manufacturing sector; enact responsible leadership; preserve sovereignty of the people; increase access to clean water; create "Baba Care",[56] which would focus on social protection and transformation; and upscale health coverage to universal health care.

Ruto, who intended to apply a "bottom-up economic model", presented a manifesto promising to revive the economy, provide healthcare for all, promote micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME), and implement a two-thirds gender rule and affordable housing, among other policies.

[59][60] Wajackoyah intended to legalise marijuana for commercial purposes, introduce snake farming, export dog meat, shut and bring down the standard-gauge railway, hang the corrupt, suspend the constitution, introduce four-day work week, move capital city to Isiolo, create eight states, and repatriate idle foreigners.

He planned to pledge alliance to the constitution; to family, women, youth, persons living with disability, county governments, workers, business owners, the economy, religious institutions and the environment; as well as to the international community.

[66] The debates were scheduled to run on 11, 19, and 26 July 2022 at Catholic University of Eastern Africa; and they were to be broadcast live across most television and radio stations, and their online platforms.

[83] Although the presidential election was considered a two-horse race between Odinga and Ruto, Wajackoyah gained significant popularity within the electorate due to his radical measures to quell the ballooning public debt.

[87] Odinga billed himself and his running mate Karua as liberators who fought for the multiparty system, campaigned for the new regime in 2002 and were proponents of the 2010 constitutional dispensation.

[88][89] On 28 July 2022, Ruto's running mate Gachagua was ordered by the anti-corruption court to forfeit Ksh 202 million to the state after it was determined the funds were proceeds of corruption.

[92][93][94][95] The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) announced plans to roll out the first phase of a 30-day mass voter registration exercise beginning 4 October 2021.

[98][99] In May 2022, the commission suspended voter registration to March 2023, attributing the move to the auditing and verification processes that may alter with the timelines set ahead of the elections.

[103] He admitted in a radio interview that he did not graduate from the city's university, accusing Uhuru Kenyatta of plotting to destroy his political ambitions.

[104][105] At the time of clearance, he had presented a Bachelor of Science in Management certificate from Uganda's Team University, where he alleged he was an external student.

[116][117] The ballot papers were printed by a Greek firm known as Inform P Lykos, situated in Athens, which was awarded the tender worth Ksh 3 billion.

[121] Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) boss George Kinoti released an official statement claiming the two Venezuelan nationals traveled with expired passports, were in possession of 'questionable' material and were on a business trip.

[126] On 8 August 2022, IEBC suspended the gubernatorial elections in Kakamega and Mombasa counties, as well as the parliamentary polls for Pokot South, Rongai and Kacheliba constituencies.

[139][140] Didmus Barasa, the Member of Parliament for Kimilili Constituency, had been accused of shooting dead his rival's security guard and fleeing the scene following the event.

A strategist working on the campaign of William Ruto claims that his Telegram account had been hacked before the elections, including increased activities.

Four IEBC commissioners, led by vice chair Juliana Cherera, held a press conference stating that they do not "take ownership" of the results, citing issues with the final tallying process.

[147] After security personnel resolved the situation, Chebukati made his way to the auditorium and announced the results, naming William Ruto as the president-elect.

[148] The following day, 16 August, the dissident IEBC commissioners, Cherera, Francis Wanderi, Irene Masit and Justus Nyang’aya, gave a more detailed explanation of the division within the commission.

[152] Chebukati also defended his announcement by stating that the 100.01% result was attributable to a rounding error,[153] and accused the four dissenting commissioners of trying to force a re-run of the election.