Government of Kenya - wikipedia Government of Kenya Government of Kenya Swahili : Serikali ya Kenya Coat of arms of Kenya Formation 1963 Jurisdiction Republic of Kenya Website http://www.mygov.go.ke/ Legislative branch Legislature Parliament of Kenya Meeting place Parliament Buildings Executive branch Leader President of Kenya Appointer Direct popular vote Headquarters State House Main organ Cabinet ( 21 Ministries of Kenya ) Judicial branch Court Supreme Court Seat Nairobi The Government of the Republic of Kenya ( GoK ) is the national government of the republic of Kenya which is composed of 47 Counties, each county with its own semi-autonomous governments. The national government is composed of three arms : the legislature, the executive and the judiciary. Each arm is independent of the other and their individual roles are set by the Constitution of Kenya. The full name of the country is the `` Republic of Kenya ''. Its official Swahili name is ' Jamhuri ya Kenya '. Other terms such as GoK, GK and Serikali are popularly used to refer to the Kenyan government. Contents 1 History 2 The Legislative 3 The Executive 3.1 President 3.2 Deputy President 3.3 The Cabinet 4 The Judiciary 4.1 The Court System 5 Elections and voting 6 County governments 7 See also 8 References 9 External links History The government was formed in 1963. However, Kenya did n't become a republic until 1964. Initially, the head of government was the Prime Minister who was Jomo Kenyatta. He later on became the President of Kenya. The current structure of government allows power to be held on two levels : the national level and the county level. This allows the Counties of Kenya a form of autonomy. Before the 2013 elections Kenya was under a central government with 8 provinces. The country is a representative democracy legislatively, and a direct democracy in the election of its president, who is leader of the Executive branch of government. Kenya 's constitution states that it is a multi-party democratic state founded on the national values and principles of governance referred to in Article 10. There are three arms of government, which operate independently and work to balance each other, based upon the `` Separation of powers '' principle. Before the 2013 general election the Judiciary would n't be considered as independent as it is today, and before the 1992 elections Kenya was n't a multiparty state - all power was centered in the Executive with Daniel arap Moi as President. The legislative The legislative branch includes the National Assembly and the Senate. The executive The Executive is charged with enforcing the law. The executive branch consists of the President, the Deputy President and the Cabinet. Cabinet meetings are held with the Attorney General present. President Main article : President of Kenya The Presidential Standard The President is the head of state and government, as in most republics. He is also the Commander - in - chief of the Kenya Defence Forces. The President has the power to appoint every leader within the executive including Cabinet Secretaries and the Attorney General. The incumbent is Uhuru Kenyatta son of the first President, Jomo Kenyatta. Kenya has had a total of 4 presidents. Two of the former Presidents, Mwai Kibaki and Daniel arap Moi are still alive. The longest serving president was Daniel arap Moi who served for a total of 24 years. The National Assembly with at least a third of all the members, may set in motion an act to impeach the President. The National Assembly may do so on the grounds of gross violation of the Constitution or any other law, where there is reasons to believing that the President has committed a crime under national or international law or for gross misconduct. If the motion to impeach passes in the National Assembly the act to impeach moves to the Senate and if at least two - thirds of all the members of the Senate vote to uphold any impeachment charge, the President shall cease to hold office. Deputy President Main article : Deputy President of Kenya Kenya This article is part of a series on the politics and government of Kenya National Government Constitution History Human rights Executive President ( list ) Uhuru Kenyatta Deputy President William Ruto Cabinet Attorney General Githu Muigai Director of Public Prosecutions Keriako Tobiko Legislature National Assembly Speaker : Justin Muturi List of members Constituencies Senate Speaker : Kenneth Lusaka List of members Judiciary Chief Justice David Maraga Deputy Chief Justice Philomena Mbete Mwilu Supreme Court Court of Appeal High Court Subordinate courts Magistrates Courts Kadhi Courts Courts Martial Tribunals Judicial Service Commission Administrative divisions Counties Sub-Counties Constituencies Commissions Offices Electoral and Boundaries Ethics and Anti-Corruption National Human Rights and Equality ( National Commission on Human Rights Administrative Justice ) National Land Commission Revenue Allocation Salaries and Remuneration Service Commissions Judicial National Police Parliamentary Public Teachers Offices Auditor - General Controller of Budget Recent elections General : 2002 2007 2013 Local : 2002 2007 2013 Political parties The National Alliance United Republican Party Orange Democratic Movement Wiper Democratic Movement Party of National Unity Kenya African National Union Kenya National Congress Foreign relations Economic schemes Vision 2030 Kenya Economic Stimulus Program Other countries Atlas The Deputy President is the second - highest executive office in the republic. The position before the 2013 general election was known as the Vice-President of Kenya. There have been 11 deputy presidents since independence. The incumbent is William Ruto who as Uhuru Kenyatta is part of the Jubilee Alliance. The first person to hold the position was Jaramogi Oginga Odinga. The 8th person to hold the office, Michael Kijana Wamalwa was the first and only person to pass away while in office. George Saitoti has held the position twice on separate occasions. The Deputy President 's functions are to be the main assistant to the President and shall deputise for the President in the execution of the President 's functions. He must be qualified to become president in order to take the office as he is first in line in the order of presidential succession. The Deputy President as the president is limited to two terms in office. The Cabinet Main articles : Cabinet of Kenya and Ministries of Kenya The Government is run by the Ministries of Kenya. The constitution limits the number of Ministries to a minimum of 14 and maximum of 22. The headings of the ministries are known as Cabinet Secretaries who are all nominated by the President. The President has power to assign and dismiss a Cabinet Secretary. A Cabinet Secretary can not be an MP and their deputies are known as Principal Secretaries. All civil servants e.g. teachers in public schools or diplomats fall under one of the ministries in the Cabinet. The Judiciary Main article : Judiciary of Kenya The Judiciary is charged with applying and upholding the law. This is done through a legal system consisting of courts. The Court system Supreme Court Buildings The Judiciary is led by the Chief Justice who is currently David Maraga. The highest court is the Supreme Court whose decisions are binding on all the other courts. The courts are divided into two levels : Superior Courts and Subordinate Courts. Superior Courts are the higher courts and are presided over by Judges. These are the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal, the High Court which hears almost every type of case., the Environment and Land Court and the Industrial Court. The subordinate courts consist of the Magistrates courts, the Kadhi courts, the Courts Martial and any other court or local tribunal as may be established by an Act of Parliament, other than the currently established courts. All Judges, including the Chief Justice and the Deputy Chief Justice, are selected by the Judicial Service Commission but are officially appointed by the President. However, the persons selected to be the Chief Justice and Deputy Chief Justice must first be vetted by Parliament before being appointed by the President. All other Judges do not need Parliamentary vetting and approval. Magistrates who preside over the subordinate courts are selected and appointed by the Judicial Service Commission without the involvement of the President or Parliament. Elections and voting Main article : Elections in Kenya Map of the Counties of Kenya Elections in Kenya that predate 1992 were not multiparty elections. On independence, Kenya voted for Kenyatta as President. However, over the next few years Kenya slowly transitioned from being a democracy to being a one - party state. Kenyatta 's regime greatly oversaw the gradual limitation of the democratic system. Kenyatta died in 1978 ; his vice President Moi took over and in 1982 the country was officially made a one - party state with every other party being outlawed. This was met by resistance over the next decade or so. In 1992 Kenya 's first multiparty elections were held. Ever since then elections have been held every 5 years. In 2013 the general election paved the way for semi-autonomy of the 47 counties of Kenya. Uhuru Kenyatta, the incumbent won and his coalition the Jubilee Alliance now controls the majority in both houses of Parliament, i.e. the National Assembly and the Senate. The state allows universal suffrage based on the aspiration for fair representation and equality. The only people not allowed to vote are people convicted of an election offence during the preceding five years. Elections in Kenya are overseen by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission. County governments Main article : Counties of Kenya The Counties of Kenya have devolved functions of the former central government. Each county has its own Governor who is directly elected and thereafter becomes the highest elected official in the county. Each county has its own County Assembly with MCAs ( Members of the County Assembly ) as representatives. The powers of the County are provided in Articles 191 and 192, and in the Fourth Schedule of the Constitution of Kenya and the County Governments Act of 2012. Functions and duties not assigned by the Constitution automatically become the National governments responsibility. As opposed to other devolved governments around the world, only the national government may impose income tax, value - added tax, customs duties and other duties on import and export goods and excise tax. The counties are individually allowed to impose property rates, entertainment taxes and any other tax that it is authorised to impose by an Act of Parliament. See also President The Cabinet The Judiciary The Supreme Court Law The Constitution Counties Counties Kenya portal Politics portal References ^ Jump up to : History of Kenya Republic of Kenya Archived 26 April 2015 at the Wayback Machine... Retrieved June 2, 2015. ^ Jump up to : Const2010 CONSTITUTION OF KENYA Republic of Kenya. Retrieved June 2, 2015. Jump up ^ `` Const2010 ''. www.kenyalaw.org. Retrieved 2017 - 05 - 16. Jump up ^ Kenya profile Timeline. Retrieved June 2, 2015. Jump up ^ Kenyan vice-president dies in London hospital. Retrieved June 2, 2015. External links Wikiversity has learning resources about School : Political science myGov, the official GoK portal. OpenData Kenya, Government Stats Open Data Initiative The Presidency, The Presidency GoK Kenya articles History Timeline Arab slave trade East Africa Protectorate Uganda Railway Kenya Colony In World War II Ilemi Triangle Kenya African Union Mau Mau Uprising 1963 Constitution 1982 coup d'état attempt Goldenberg scandal 1992 Elections 2007 -- 2008 crisis 2010 referendum 2013 Elections Geography Biosphere reserves Climate Ecoregions Environmental issues Great Rift Valley Lakes Mountains Protected areas Rivers Volcanoes Wildlife World Heritage Sites Subdivisions Cities Counties ( * Coat of arms * Flags ) Politics Constitution Elections Foreign relations Government Human rights Intersex LGBT Judiciary Law enforcement Military Parliament Political parties President list Deputy President Prime Minister ( defunct ) Economy Agriculture Central bank Coffee Energy Real Estate Shilling ( currency ) Telecommunications Tourism Transport Society Corruption Crime Demographics Education Health healthcare Languages Religion Water supply and sanitation Culture Anthem Cinema Coat of arms English Engsh Flag Names Literature Media Museums Music Public holidays Sports Sheng Swahili Video gaming Outline Index Portal Governments of Africa Sovereign states Algeria Angola Benin Botswana Burkina Faso Burundi Cameroon Cape Verde ( Cabo Verde ) Central African Republic Chad Comoros Democratic Republic of the Congo Republic of the Congo Djibouti Egypt Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Ethiopia Gabon The Gambia Ghana Guinea Guinea - Bissau Ivory Coast ( Côte d'Ivoire ) Kenya Lesotho Liberia Libya Madagascar Malawi Mali Mauritania Mauritius Morocco Mozambique Namibia Niger Nigeria Rwanda São Tomé and Príncipe Senegal Seychelles Sierra Leone Somalia South Africa South Sudan Sudan Swaziland Tanzania Togo Tunisia Uganda Zambia Zimbabwe States with limited recognition Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic Somaliland Dependencies and other territories Canary Islands / Ceuta / Melilla ( Spain ) Madeira ( Portugal ) Mayotte / Réunion ( France ) Saint Helena / Ascension Island / Tristan da Cunha ( United Kingdom ) Western Sahara Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Government_of_Kenya&oldid=834171576 '' Categories : Government of Kenya 1963 establishments in Kenya Hidden categories : Webarchive template wayback links Use British English from May 2015 Use dmy dates from May 2015 Articles containing Swahili - language text Pages using deprecated image syntax Talk Contents About Wikipedia Languages Add links This page was last edited on 4 April 2018, at 09 : 11. 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Question: what type of political system does kenya have
Answer: republic