diff --git a/vc-utils/keymanager.sh b/vc-utils/keymanager.sh
index 5fc11e3b..ab72df4e 100755
--- a/vc-utils/keymanager.sh
+++ b/vc-utils/keymanager.sh
@@ -499,7 +499,7 @@ validator-count() {
         get-token
     fi
     __validator-list-call
-    declare key_count=$(echo "$__result" | jq -r '.data | length')
+    key_count=$(echo "$__result" | jq -r '.data | length')
     echo "Validator keys loaded into ${__service}: $key_count"
 
     if [ "${WEB3SIGNER}" = "true" ]; then