Court of Appeal declines to suspend order on Ruto’s Cabinet gender balance
The ruling leaves in force a High Court order for Ruto to reconstitute his Cabinet under the two-thirds gender rule. The 120-day deadline to comply expired on October 28, The Standard reports.
The Court of Appeal has declined to suspend a High Court order requiring President William Ruto to reconstitute his Cabinet, The Standard reported on Monday. The order rests on Article 27(8) of the Constitution. The article bars any appointive public body from having more than two-thirds of its members of one gender. According to The Standard, Ruto's 25-member Cabinet has seven women. The law requires at least nine, leaving the Cabinet two women short. The paper did not say exactly when the Court of Appeal ruled. The case arose from a petition by Katiba Institute and others. On June 30, 2026, a three-judge High Court bench declared the Cabinet unconstitutional. The judges held that the gender rule was immediate, mandatory and enforceable. They gave the President 120 days to comply, and that period ended on October 28. The Law Society of Kenya has said the Cabinet is illegal and its decisions are open to challenge,…
Read more 2 min read