Raila Odinga pulls out of Kenya Presidential Elections Rerun

Raila Odinga (Photo by Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

Raila Odinga, Kenyan opposition leader, has pulled out of the presidential rerun elections slated for 26 October.

Odinga, in a statement, said the decision was made considering the interests of the people of Kenya, BBC reports. He said:

After deliberating on our position in respect of the upcoming election, considering the interests of the people of Kenya, the region and the world at large, we believe that all will be best served by the party vacating its presidential candidature in the election scheduled for 26 October 2017.

Raila Odinga, a former Prime Minister, had ran against Kenyatta, the incumbent, at the August 8 elections.

Kenyatta had won  defeating Odinga, his closest rival, by about 1.4 million votes.

The Kenyan Supreme Court had declared the election invalid due to irregularities committed by the election board.

Photo Credit: Chris Jackson/Getty Images