The post-election violence in Kenya is being explained by the media as tribal conflict, an explanation undoubtable correct at least in part.

For example, Fox News and the New York Times.

From the NYT:

The violence -- which has erupted from the shantytowns of Nairobi to resort towns on the sweltering coast -- has exposed tribal resentments that have long festered in Kenya. Kibaki's Kikuyu people, Kenya's largest ethnic group, are accused of turning their dominance of politics and business to the detriment of others.

But is religion involved? During the campaign it was reported that the opposition leader Raila Odinga promised Muslims that he would introduce Sharia (Islamic Law) as the law of the land in Kenya if he won. That report generated controversy in Kenya.

Odinga has denied the report. And certainly, since Muslims are a minority in Kenya, such a promise would not make political sense.

At the least, religion has been a factor in the Kenyan election, as testified to by Bertil Mketu in Kenya Magazine

On the religious front, the country is awash with crusades and other similar religious functions that are usually well attended. Parliamentary aspirants all over the country are known to be determined in their attendance of church functions and their conduct of fund raising activities for religious causes, especially right before elections are called. With the growth of the prominence of Kenyan Islam and the Pentecostal churches, these particular constituencies have become more important in the calculations of the major presidential candidates. While tribe may win you the backing of one district, getting the support of a religious leader with a large following opens doors across the country and makes millions more receptive to your message.

Again, while others rebuffed this approach to national politics, the Lang'ata MP was not so squeamish. Instead he was quick to woo Muslim leaders who were disillusioned with the government, even as the political parties allied with the Government ignored their overtures. Later after the revelation that Raila had met the Muslims and sealed some form of a deal became public, a panic-stricken Government realised its folly and started playing catch-up fully aware it seems of the value of this constituency. In a testament to just how central to our politics, and just how passion-inducing religion can be, Raila's Memorandum of Understanding with the NAMLEF has remained one of the hottest and most prominent political topics of the campaign period.

And it is not just this constituency that the ODM has been courting. When American televangelist TD Jakes visited the country in October 2005, Raila Odinga was among the political leaders who attended the crusade at Uhuru Park. In addition local Christian church leaders like Pastor Brawan of Nakuru and Bishop Margaret Wanjiru of Jesus Is Alive Ministries have both been prominent in the rallies of Raila and have been nominated to vie for parliamentary seats on the party's ticket. During the Thunder Rally, Pastor Brawan had a band that entertained the gathered crowd contrasting with the P-Unit and DNA team that had been assembled to play at the Nyayo Stadium rally of President Kibaki a week earlier. This association with religious groups extends beyond political association. The main parties have made a point of opening religious meetings with prayers. President Kibaki's campaign rally at Nyayo Stadium for example, featured Islamic, Hindu, Christian and traditional religious prayers.

An interesting aside, is the fact of the Presidential Candidates' names. Mwai Kibaki has not used his Christian names prominently, so much so that if one was to call the Roman Catholic Kibaki using the names Emilio Stanley, few people would know who was being spoken of. The ODM candidate has on his part had fend off claims that he is not Christian for among other reason his lack of a Christian Western name. Kalonzo Musyoka, the ODM-K candidate has made more pronounced use of his Christianity, using both his name Stephen more prominently and also confessing to being a born again Christian. His rally at Uhuru Park was reportedly preceded by a church service and he has sought to inject a quasi-religious bent to his campaign, speaking prophetically. He has promised miracles and made no small point of his eschewal of corruption. The ODM-K candidate's stance is not new either; he has previously chaired the Prayer Group of the national Assembly and was involved in the first National Prayer Breakfast.