You Don’t Need a degree to Run for Presidency, Court Rules

The degree subject has again made a comeback in the political arena. This is after the high court ruled on Monday that a degree certificate is not a requirement to run for office, in this case the Presidency.

The ruling follows a petition filed in may 2022 by former presidential aspirant Nazlin Umar Rajput in the lead up to the 2022 General Election. After the IEBC failed to clear her to contest in the polls.

In her submission, Umar pleaded that the education qualification for the president is the same as that of the member of parliament basing her plea on the decision of a petition no 28 of 2020.

In her petition Ms. Umar pleaded with the court to restrain IEBC from requiring or demanding a degree qualification from her or any other person of Kenyan descent that wants to vie for the presidency

Justice Anthony Mrima In a ruling dated December 16, 2022, said that Section 22(2) of the Elections Act is unconstitutional for mandatorily demanding that a presidential aspirant must possess a university degree as long as the decision to waive the requirement for MPs stands.