Kenya’s Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) has launched a new nationwide voter registration campaign that, for the first time, incorporates iris biometrics alongside fingerprints, ID card scans, and facial photos. The initiative began today and is expected to enroll 6.3 million new voters in preparation for upcoming by-elections in November and the 2027 General Elections.
Expanding the Biometric Stack
During the enrollment process, the IEBC is now scanning national ID cards, capturing fingerprints and iris patterns, and photographing voters. Commissioner Alutalala Mukhwana described iris capture as a measure to improve accuracy and prevent duplicate registrations, noting that the Commission would review legal provisions to ensure compliance with the new process.
“This is an improvement to ensure the accuracy and credibility of the data of those who will vote,” Mukhwana said. He added that iris will complement existing fingerprint and facial recognition methods.
The Continuous Voter Registration drive has started at constituency offices and will expand to ward level, ultimately aiming to reach an estimated 28.5 million voters by 2027.
Budget and Technology Context
The IEBC recently told Parliament that the 2027 elections will cost 57.3 billion Kenyan shillings, reflecting heavy investment in technology and operations. The Commission has long relied on Biometric Voter Registration (BVR) and Electronic Voter Identification (EVID) devices, and later integrated them into KIEMS kits. While fingerprint verification has been standard, devices have faced reliability issues in past elections. The addition of iris capture is positioned as a higher-accuracy, redundant modality to strengthen voter enrollment integrity.
IEBC leadership has also reaffirmed that biometric validation will remain mandatory for the next election cycle, rejecting proposals to allow voting with ID cards alone.
Prior Use of Biometrics
Kenya has a long history of using biometrics in government programs. The IEBC first rolled out biometric voter registration ahead of the 2017 elections, as noted in earlier reporting on Kenya’s biometric enrollment drive. The government has also deployed biometric systems for other sectors, including the registration of law enforcement officers and the replacement of insurance cards with fingerprint verification. Regional debates around election security have also highlighted solutions such as iiDENTIFii’s biometric platforms.
The iris expansion underscores Kenya’s continued reliance on biometric systems as a foundation for electoral integrity and identity management.
Source: Kenyans.co.ke, Citizen Digital, Nairobi Law Monthly
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By Ji-seo Kim
