ODM members will today troop to the polling stations for the first grassroots election in the absence of the party leader Raila Odinga.
By Tuesday, the party had dispatched the election materials and membership register to all the 47 counties in readiness for the oneday marathon exercise.
ODM supporters at the polling stations will elect 30 officials consisting of 10 mainstream, 10 youth league and 10 women league.
Within the mainstream category, several positions are open, including chairperson, vice chairperson, secretary, organising secretary, treasurer, women leader, youth leader and three committee members.
For the women and youth league categories, positions will include chairperson, secretary, organizing secretary and three committee members each.
To be eligible for the elections, every aspirant will pay Sh100 to participate in today’s exercise.
The Orange party has four tiers of delegates at the polling station level, ward level, constituency (branch) and county level.
National Elections Coordinating Committee chairperson Emily Awita expressed confidence that the exercise would usher in fresh blood.
“Elections will start from 10am in the morning, latest 3pm. Members of the party are urged to come out in their numbers so that we get leaders that we want,” Awita said.
The ODM election boss also called for peace and order during the exercise that has in the past been marked by chaos and cases of violence.
In a dispatch to newsrooms, the ODM’s National Elections Coordination Board called for discipline during the exercise.
Grassroots elections for political parties have always been a hot potato that most outfits avoid, opting instead to headhunt officials to take up the positions.
The party is planning to have fresh blood in vital party organs as it seeks to lay strong foundation for the 2027 battle.
In the first round of his aggressive efforts to redeem ODM, the outfit has disbanded the National Elections Board and in its place created a three-member NECC, which is in charge of election.
NECC is regarded as the heart of the party as they make high-impact decisions to foster cohesion and a strong performance in general elections.
Awita also confirmed all the elections coordinating officers have been trained and deployed to their respective regions in the readiness for the elections.
“During the exercise, only registered members will be eligible to
participate in the elections, copies
of the register will be available in all
the 47 counties by close of business
Tuesday in readiness for the exercise,”
she said.
