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65pc of Kenyans would vote for female president

According to Infotrak Chief Executive Officer Angela Ambitho, although majority would vote in a woman, the women are yet to overcome the hurdles that deny them a chance for their entry into politics/FILE

According to Infotrak Chief Executive Officer Angela Ambitho, although majority would vote in a woman, the women are yet to overcome the hurdles that deny them a chance for their entry into politics/FILE

NAIROBI, Kenya, Mar 7 – A survey released by Infotrak Research and Consulting on Friday shows that majority of Kenyans are comfortable voting for a woman as president.

The report indicated that 64.5 percent of Kenyans would vote in favour of a woman while 35.5 percent would not support a woman vying for the presidency.

According to Infotrak Chief Executive Officer Angela Ambitho, although majority would vote in a woman, the women are yet to overcome the hurdles that deny them a chance for their entry into politics.

“Yes, even though no female presidential candidate has ever gotten even 20 percent of votes cast in the history of independent Kenya, more than half of Kenyans would vote for a woman president.

“Indeed majority of Kenyans believe that increased participation by women in politics will markedly improve the political scene in Kenya.”

“However as they plan, women must strategise on how to mitigate the barriers that hamper their success in politics and deal with them early in the day,” she explained.

Inequality in the political playing field stood out in the findings as the major obstacle that the women faced in their political endeavors.

“A total of 44.4 percent of respondents said that insecurity and fear of attack from male opponents deterred women from starting off in politics, 13.1 percent said lack of family support was the cause and the 11 percent blaming it on lack of finances.”

“Women currently in politics need to assert themselves to prove that the fight for 1/3 gender rule was valid. Kenyans want to see more dynamism from female legislators and feel that their presence in parliament should initiate positive change,” she added.
The report also revealed a shift in the place of a woman in the society from home makers to decision makers with majority advocating for more women to hold managerial positions.

“Though there are less women managers both in government or the private sector than men, 55 percent say that they are better managers and only 25 percent saying they are worse compared to men.”

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“Further, 19.7 percent think that women are better suited to be nurses and 17.9 percent saying that the women are better suited to hold public administration offices and 8.8 percent say they are better placed as civil servants,” she explained.

The poll was conducted between March 2-4, and took a sample size of 1,200 respondents over the age of 18 years.

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