NAIROBI: Kenyan opposition areas were calmer Saturday, a day after the country's election commission postponed voting in four restive counties where deadly clashes between police and protesters have occurred. It was not clear when the presidential election, a rerun of the flawed vote in August, would be over.

The streets of Kisumu, Kenya’s third-largest city and an opposition stronghold, as well as several Nairobi slums were largely quiet, though police used tear gas to disperse crowds in Kawangware slum.

However, political uncertainty persists after opposition leader Raila Odinga boycotted the repeat election on Thursday. The election commission had delayed voting in four out of Kenya’s 47 counties until Saturday because of violence. The new postponement is "until further notice” because of concerns for election workers’ safety.

The Supreme Court nullified the Aug. 8 vote because of irregularities – the first time a court in Africa had overturned a presidential election. Odinga, whose legal challenge led to the ruling, withdrew from the new election, saying the process was not credible because of the lack of electoral reforms.

At least six people have died in violence linked to the latest vote, including a man who was shot and killed in Kawangware as security forces moved to quell fighting between gangs from different ethnic groups late Friday.

On Saturday afternoon in Kawangware, young men taunted the police and ran for cover. Many support Odinga.

"I don’t see this ending soon,” said one supporter, Paul Maumo. He accused the election commission of staging a fraudulent vote. Many observers say Kenya’s ethnic-based politics overshadow the promise of its democracy. President Uhuru Kenyatta, who got 54 percent of the vote in August, is from the Kikuyu community. Odinga, who got nearly 45 percent in the earlier election, is a Luo.

Daily Times