The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) has reinstated its voter verification portal after an unexplained outage left millions of Kenyans unable to access their registration information.
In a statement issued on Sunday, the commission confirmed the portal is now operational following a period of system maintenance. The IEBC said the exercise was aimed at migrating its infrastructure to enhance performance and security.
The outage had affected both the IEBC web portal and the SMS verification platform, which requires voters to send their ID or passport number along with their year of birth to 70000. The blackout caused widespread concern among the public, particularly as political activity begins to build ahead of the 2027 General Election.
“We wish to assure all Kenyans that the registration details of the 22,120,458 registered voters, as recorded during the 2022 General Election, remain intact and secure,” said the IEBC in its Sunday statement. The commission further explained that the upgrade was necessary “to bolster service delivery through improved system performance and data security.”
The downtime had drawn criticism due to the lack of clear communication. The commission did not initially indicate when the maintenance began, how long it would last, or the specific upgrades being implemented. Its first statement only noted, “We will promptly communicate once the system is fully operational and ready for verification of voter details,” without offering a timeline.
The sudden unavailability of the verification platforms sparked fresh scrutiny over the IEBC’s transparency and preparedness, especially in light of Kenya’s history of disputed elections. Although the commission’s announcement brought relief to many, concerns remain over its ability to communicate effectively during critical moments.
While the verification tool has now resumed operations, civil society groups and election observers have called on the commission to improve transparency in managing key digital systems. With over 22 million registered voters and national attention focused on the 2027 polls, the IEBC continues to face mounting pressure to strengthen public trust in its processes.
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