Why did international observers question Kenya’s 2007 election results?

International observers questioned the validity of Kenya’s 2007 presidential election results primarily due to the significant discrepancy between the initial provisional results and the final official outcome.123

While provisional tallies indicated that Raila Odinga was on track to win the presidency, the final results were released only after a suspicious delay, at which point incumbent president Mwai Kibaki was declared the winner by a narrow margin. This sudden reversal and the lack of transparency surrounding the final tallying process led to widespread skepticism regarding the integrity of the election.132

The dispute triggered a period of intense political instability and horrific ethnic violence, resulting in more than 1,000 deaths and the displacement of over 600,000 people. The crisis was eventually addressed through a power-sharing agreement brokered by Kofi Annan and others, which established a coalition government and created the position of prime minister for Odinga.123