General elections were held in

Kenya Colony The Colony and Protectorate of Kenya, commonly known as British Kenya or British East Africa, was part of the British Empire in Africa from 1920 until 1963. It was established when the former East Africa Protectorate was transformed into a Brit ...

on 2 April 1924."Government Notice No. 94", ''Kenya Gazette'', 18 March 1924, pp6–8 The elections were the first under a new Constitution which saw suffrage extended to

Indians Indian or Indians may refer to: Associated with India * of or related to India ** Indian people ** Indian diaspora ** Languages of India ** Indian English, a dialect of the English language ** Indian cuisine Associated with indigenous peoples o ...

and

Arabs Arabs (, , ; , , ) are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in West Asia and North Africa. A significant Arab diaspora is present in various parts of the world. Arabs have been in the Fertile Crescent for thousands of yea ...

, who were allotted five and one elected seat in the

Legislative Council A legislative council is the legislature, or one of the legislative chambers, of a nation, colony, or subnational division such as a province or state. It was commonly used to label unicameral or upper house legislative bodies in the Brit ...

respectively, alongside the eleven elected seats for the white population, although appointed members were still the majority."Kenya Franchise: New Constitution Adopted", ''The Times'', 5 January 1924, p9, Issue 43541 Whilst all adult Indian residents were given the right to vote, in the Arab community only men literate in

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

Swahili Swahili may refer to: * Swahili language, a Bantu language officially used in Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda and widely spoken in the African Great Lakes. * Swahili people, an ethnic group in East Africa. * Swahili culture, the culture of the Swahili p ...

and resident in the country for two years were enfranchised, as the community had requested that women not be given the right to vote. One member was appointed to represent the majority black population."Kenya Franchise Swaraj Agitators At Work; White Settlers' Views" ''The Times'', 8 February 1924, p9, Issue 43570 The Reform Party was one of the parties to contest the election in the white community.

Results

Despite their enfranchisement, the Indian community boycotted the election after their leaders forbade registration in protest at being placed on a separate roll to the White voters and the small number of seats given to Indians relative to Whites."Kenya Elections: European Candidates' Programme" ''The Times'', 27 March 1924, p13, Issue 43611 As a result no Indians took their seats in the Council."Indian Boycott Of Kenya Legislature", ''The Times'', 24 April 1924, p11, Issue 43634

Appointed members

Aftermath

The newly elected Legislative Council met for the first time on 14 May 1924.Kenya National Assembly Official Record (Hansard) 1924, Session I

References

{{Kenyan elections

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

Elections in Kenya Legislative Council of Kenya Election and referendum articles with incomplete results