Why Kenya’s democracy suffers greatly after every election cycle – The Standard

Every five years, Kenyan citizens show up at the ballot box with hope, and then the cycle begins anew: a new government is elected, only for many to feel that the promise of meaningful change remains unmet. According to the article, while the 2010 Constitution proudly declared We the People, today the lived reality too often feels like They the Rulers.
The author highlights that major flashpoints—the controversial Finance Bill, the new housing levy, repeated courtroom wranglings—aren’t merely policy disputes. Instead, they signify a system where sovereignty is voted for, but rarely exercised beyond election day.
Why is this happening? The piece argues that the institutional architecture of Kenyan democracy remains thin. Although the country has held regular elections, the mechanisms by which citizens hold leaders accountable in between votes remain weak. Checks on power often feel symbolic rather than substantive. The author offers a bold remedy: the introduction of a Sovereign Bill that would embed direct citizen tools of accountability—legislation initiation, law vetoes, public-trackable participation mechanisms—to deepen democracy beyond the ballot.
The implications are sobering. If the pattern persists, elections risk becoming periodic rituals of hope followed by long stretches of disenchantment. Without reforms to shift power toward citizens in practice — not just in theory — Kenya’s democracy may continue to struggle. The article calls on political actors, civil society and the public to demand more than governance; they must insist on shared sovereignty that lives between elections. Title: Why Kenya’s Democracy Suffers Greatly After Every Election Cycle