PART II - SWEARING OF THE MEMBERS AND ELECTION OF THE SPEAKER

Proceedings on Assembly of a New County Assembly

4. (1) Whenever a new Assembly is elected, the Governor shall, by notice in the Gazette, the date of the first sitting of the new County Assembly, which shall not be more than thirty days from the date on which the County Assembly shall be fully constituted as provide for under section 7A

(2) On the first sitting of a new Assembly after a general election, the Clerk shall-

a) read the notification of the convening the Assembly as published in the Gazette;

b) lay a list of the names of the persons elected and nominated as Members on the Table of the Assembly; and

c) administer Oath or Affirmation of Office provided for in the First Schedule of the County Governments Act, to all members present in the Assembly in the order set out in paragraph (3).

(3) The Clerk shall administer the Oath or Affirmation of Office to members of the Assembly in alphabetical order but shall make such arrangements as may be necessary to enable any Member with disability to enjoy precedence.

(4) Pursuant to Article 74 of the Constitution, no person shall assume or perform any functions of the office of a member before taking and subscribing to the Oath or Affirmation of Office provided for under paragraph (3)

(5) When the Clerk is administering the Oath or Affirmation of Office to members and before the Clerk has administered the Oath or Affirmation of Office to the Speaker, any question arising in the Assembly shall be determined by the Clerk who shall, during that period, exercise the powers of the Speaker.

(6) At any other time, the Oath or Affirmation of Office shall be administered by the Speaker immediately after Prayers.

(7) When a Member first attends to take his or her seat after the first sitting of the Assembly, the Member shall, before taking his or her seat be escorted to the Table by two Members and be presented by them to the Speaker who shall then administer to the Member the Oath or Affirmation of Office.

(8) Notwithstanding Standing Order 32(Hours of Meeting), on the day when the election of the Speaker is to be conducted after a general election, the sitting of the Assembly shall commence at 9:00 am.

Vacancy in the Office of the Speaker

5. Pursuant to the provisions of section 21(1) of the Elections Act as read together with section 11 of the County Governments Act, the office of speaker shall become vacant-

(a) when a new County Assembly first meets following an election;

(b) if the office holder vacates;

(c) if the County Assembly resolves to remove the office holder in accordance with Standing Order 63(Procedure for removal of the Speaker);

(d) if the office holder resigns from office in a letter addressed to the County Assembly; or,

(e) if the office holder dies.

Election of the Speaker

6. (1) A Speaker shall be elected when the County Assembly first meets after a General Election and before the County Assembly proceeds with the dispatch of any other business, except the administration of the Oath or Affirmation of Office to Members present.

(2) If the office of Speaker falls vacant at any time before the expiry of the term of County Assembly, the Deputy Speaker shall preside over the business of the County Assembly until the election of a new Speaker.

Nomination of candidates

7. (1) Upon the Governor notifying the place and date for the first sitting of a new Assembly pursuant to Standing Order 4(Proceedings on assembly of a new Assembly), the Clerk shall by notice in the Gazette notify that fact and invite interested persons to submit their nomination papers for election to the office of Speaker.

(2) The names of candidates for election to the office of Speaker shall be entered upon nomination papers obtained from the Clerk and handed back to the Clerk, at least 48 hours before the time appointed at which the Assembly is to meet to elect a Speaker

(3) The nomination papers of a candidate shall be accompanied by the names and signatures of two Members who support the candidate and a declaration by them that the candidate is qualified to be elected as a Member of Assembly under Article 193 of the Constitution and is willing to serve as Speaker of the Assembly.

(4) Any signature appended to the nomination papers by a member in support of the nomination of a candidate under paragraph (3) shall not be withdrawn and no member shall nominate more than one candidate for the election of Speaker.

(5) The Clerk shall maintain a register in which shall be shown the date and time when each candidate’s nomination papers were received and shall ascertain that every such candidate for election to the office of Speaker is qualified to be elected as such under Article 193 of the Constitution.

(6) Immediately upon the close of the nomination period provided for in paragraph (2), the Clerk shall-

(a) publicize and make available to all Members, a list showing all qualified candidates; and

(b) make available to all Members, copies of the curriculum vitae of the qualified candidates.

(7) The Clerk shall, at least two hours before the meeting of the Assembly, prepare ballot papers upon which shall be shown the names of all candidates validly nominated under paragraph (5) of this Standing Order.

Secret ballot

8. (1) The election of the Speaker shall be by secret ballot subject to Standing Order 8(4)

below.

(2) The Clerk shall, at the commencement of each ballot, cause the ballot box, empty and unlocked, to be displayed to the Assembly and shall, in the presence of the Assembly, lock the box, which shall thereafter be kept in the full view of the Assembly until the conclusion of the ballot.

(3) The Clerk shall issue not more than one ballot paper to each member who comes to the Table to obtain it and each Member who wishes to vote shall proceed to a booth or designated area provided by the Clerk for that purpose and located next to and within reasonable distance of the ballot box and shall, while there, mark the ballot paper by placing a mark in the space opposite the name of the candidate for whom the Member wishes to vote, fold the marked ballot paper before leaving the booth or area and place the folded ballot paper in the ballot box.

(4) For purposes of paragraph (3), a member who has appended their signature pursuant to Standing Order 7 (3), shall be deemed to have elected that candidate and shall be excluded from balloting but his vote shall be added to the votes of the said candidate.

(5) A Member who, before the conclusion of a ballot has marked a paper in error may, by returning it to the Clerk, obtain another in its place and the Clerk shall immediately cancel and destroy the paper so returned.

(6) The Clerk shall make such arrangements as may be necessary to enable any member with disability to vote.

(7) When it appears to the Clerk that all members who are present and who wish to vote have placed their ballot papers in the ballot box, the Clerk shall unlock the box, examine the ballot papers and, having rejected those unmarked or spoilt, report the result of the ballot; and no Member who has not already recorded his or her vote shall be entitled to do so after the Clerk has unlocked the ballot box.

(8) A ballot paper is spoilt, if in the Clerk’s opinion, it does not identify the candidate purported to be selected by the member voting.

(9) The Clerk shall declare a vote to be invalid under paragraph (8) in the presence of and after inspection by the members representing each of the candidates in the election.

Election threshold

9. (1) A person shall not be elected as Speaker, unless supported in a ballot by the votes

of two-thirds of all Members.

(2) If no candidate is supported by the votes of two-thirds of all Members, a fresh election shall be held and, in that election, the only candidate shall be –

(a) the candidate or candidates who received the highest number of votes in the ballot referred to in paragraph (1) ; and

(b) the candidate or candidates who in that ballot received the second highest number of votes.

(3) If more than one candidate receives the highest number of votes, paragraph 2(b) shall not apply and the only candidates in the fresh election shall be those contemplated in paragraph 2(a).

(4) The candidate who receives the highest number of votes in the fresh election shall be declared the Speaker.

Withdrawal of candidate

10. A candidate may, by written notice to the Clerk, withdraw his or her name before a ballot is started, and in the event of such withdrawal, the Clerk shall cross-out the name of that candidate off any ballot papers issued for that or any subsequent ballot.

Equality of votes

11. If, in the further ballot referred to in Standing Order 9 (Election threshold), more than one candidate receives the highest number of votes, the ballot shall again be taken, and if there is an equality of the highest number of votes a further ballot shall be take until one candidate obtains more votes than the other or others.

Custody of ballot papers

12. Immediately the results are declared, all the ballot papers used in the election of a Speaker shall be packed and sealed in the presence of the Assembly and kept in the custody of the Clerk for a period of six months and shall thereafter be destroyed.

Single duly nominated candidate

13. Despite the provisions of this Part, if there is only one candidate who has been duly nominated for election as Speaker at the expiry of the nomination period, that candidate shall be declared forthwith to have been elected Speaker without any ballot or vote being required.

Swearing in of the Speaker

14. Immediately following the election of the Speaker, the Clerk shall administer the Oath or Affirmation of Office to the Speaker in the presence of the assembled Assembly.

Notification of opening of Assembly

15. (1) Immediately after taking and subscribing to the Oath or Affirmation of Office under

Standing Order 14(Swearing in of the Speaker), the Speaker shall notify the members of the place, date and time of the opening of Assembly.

(2) Following the notification by the Speaker under paragraph (1), the sitting of the Assembly shall stand adjourned until the date and time of the opening of Assembly.