Presidential candidates' campaign spending capped at Sh4.4bn — IEBC

Presidential Candidates will be allowed to spend up to Sh4.4 billion for their 2022 campaigns, the IEBC has said.

In a gazette notice on Monday, the IEBC chair Wafula Chebukati said the highest spending will be in Turkana County at Sh123 million.

This is on the schedule that covers county governor, senator and woman representatives.

The lowest spending will be in Lamu County at Sh21.1 million.

In Mombasa, there will be spending of Sh39 million, Kwale Sh42 million, Kilifi Sh61 million, Kisumu Sh40 million, Homa Bay Sh41 million, Migori Sh40 million.

Others include; Nairobi Sh117 million, Narok Sh61 million, Samburu 45 million and Nyeri 32 million.

In the member of National Assembly schedule, the highest spending will be in Turkana North with Sh54.08 million, lowest is Tetu with Sh11.15 million.

Here is the full list;

According to Chebukati, the contribution limits that a political party may receive during the expenditure period shall be 100 per cent of the spending limits.

The electoral agency disclosed the criteria it intends to use in setting campaign funding limits for candidates in the 2022 General Election.

The Draft Campaign Financing Regulations, 2020, states that the IEBC will prescribe in a Gazette notice the limits of permissible expenditure to apply to six elective posts.

The regulations show that expenditure limits will be reached by tabulating the estimated costs of venues, publicity materials, advertising and media, campaign personnel, campaign agents, and election agents.

Also to be included are the cost of transportation, administrative costs, communication, candidate expenses, mobilisation, security, accommodation and contingencies of not more than 30 per cent of the total expenditure.

The total shall be the applicable limit for all constituencies with a population within the range of +/- 30 per cent of the national quota.

The current population quota is about 163,000.

Where a population falls at least 40 per cent below the recommended quota, the expenditure limit will be 30 per cent below the sum total expenditure.

In the case of sparsely populated constituencies, the expenditure limit shall be in respect of how the region compares to the set quota ‘plus the sum arrived at by multiplying each square kilometre by which the constituency area is in excess of the constituency area by Sh100.

The expenditure limit for county assembly wards shall be 30 per cent of the respective constituency.

The expenditure limits for county-wide elections shall be the sum of applicable limits of all the constituencies falling within the county minus 30 per cent thereof.

Edited by D Tarus