Women remained excluded from standing for Parliament in the 1979 election, continuing the pattern from the 1974 election. The Parliament elected in 1979 was entirely male. However, women participated actively in electoral politics as voters, campaigners, and community organizers.
Women's voter participation in the 1979 election was significant. Women voted in their constituencies, and in many rural areas, women's voter turnout was high. Women evaluated candidates based on their records and promises regarding issues affecting women and families.
The Maendeleo ya Wanawake organization continued to play important roles in the 1979 election as it had in 1974. Women's groups organized in communities, mobilized women voters, and engaged with candidates about their promises to support women's self-help projects. These organizations provided channels for women to participate in electoral politics without being able to stand as candidates.
Women traders and market associations in urban and rural areas participated in electoral politics. Women in markets organized as economic actors and as political participants. Candidate campaigns often included outreach to market women and to women traders.
The issues that concerned women voters in 1979 included access to education for their children, access to health services, water supply, and support for women's economic activities. Women advocated for these services and for government support for women's self-help projects.
The appointment of women to government positions and boards continued under the Moi government, though the number of such appointments was limited. These appointed women sometimes served as channels for women's concerns to reach the national government.
Women's property rights and inheritance laws remained issues of concern to many women, particularly in rural areas. Some candidates promised to address women's legal and economic status, though concrete action on these issues was limited.
The continued exclusion of women from parliamentary candidacy in 1979 was not seriously challenged in political debate. Women's organizations and international observers noted the absence of women in Parliament, but this did not generate widespread political pressure for change. Women's parliamentary representation would not expand significantly until the 1990s, when Kenya moved toward multiparty democracy.
Moi's government promoted women's participation in KANU activities and in the government, presenting this as evidence of gender inclusion. Women's sections of KANU were organized, and women participated in party activities. However, this participation did not translate into women being able to run for Parliament.
See Also
- 1979 Election
- Women Kenya Politics
- Maendeleo ya Wanawake
- Kenya Women's Rights 1970s-1980s
- Kenya Political System 1978-1991
- Women's Suffrage Kenya
Sources
- Wipper, Audrey. "The Roles of African Women: Female Politician and Organizer." Journal of Modern African Studies, 1975.
- Widner, Jennifer. The Rise of a Party-State in Kenya. University of California Press, 1992.
- Staudt, Kathleen. "Women Farmers and Inequalities in Agricultural Services and Training." Rural Development Studies, 1978.