ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the inherent potential embedded in social media, and provides illustrative examples on how social media was used or misused during 2013 elections in Kenya. Every election time triggers an exponential growth in the use of different media platforms for galvanising votes, organising events through social media, interacting with opinion influencers and engagement with key political issues or simply using online platforms to support offline campaign activities. While political liberalisation processes opened up spaces for political pluralism and competitive elections, several obstacles lay in the path of democratisation. The chapter discusses the limitations associated with social media in the Kenyan context. Social media have heralded new communicative spaces for political engagement in Kenya. The number of politicians and citizens using social media for election purposes is continually increasing. New technologies are increasingly changing the manner in which politicians communicate with their constituencies, especially for electoral campaigning.
