President William Ruto addresses wananchi at Kagio trading centre in Kirinyaga during the second day of his tour of Mt Kenya region on April 2, 2025.
President William Ruto’s loyalists in the Mt Kenya region fear that the growing rebellion against the government could politically drown them, and, in the process, end their careers in the 2027 General Election.
In fact, the situation is so serious that some of them are reportedly toying with the idea of abandoning the Head of State ahead of the polls to secure their own re-election.
Their key concern is that if President Ruto becomes convinced that Mt Kenya will not back his re-election bid, he may opt for a running mate from another region.
Furthermore, the President might be forced to restructure the ruling United Democratic Alliance (UDA) party, which sponsored the majority of his loyalists in Mt Kenya in the 2022 General Election.
Already, the President has made a preliminary move to convince Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi to merge his Amani National Congress (ANC) party with UDA.
Friendly parties
The Service Party leader, Mr Mwangi Kiunjuri, confided to the Nation that plans are underway to identify friendly parties in Mt Kenya to support President Ruto’s re-election bid in 2027.
“Those parties will also sponsor candidates who are friendly to President Ruto’s politics. My party is one of them - it will have Ruto as its presidential candidate and also issue certificates to candidates who support him,” he said.
Mr Kiunjuri added: “We also intend to have county point men allied to friendly political parties who will help mobilise voter turnout in support of President Ruto.”
He urged all elected leaders in Mt Kenya to begin identifying and strengthening their parties ahead of the contest.
President William Ruto (left) and his ex-deputy Rigathi Gachagua.
He acknowledged that the Mt Kenya region is currently in political turmoil regarding 2027 but insisted that President Ruto will be re-elected, hence the need for the region to reserve some of its votes for government-friendly leaders.
“I am begging Mt Kenya voters to remain steadfast in government and support President Ruto for two main reasons: He is the one holding the development wallet, and in his hands, we are safest until 2032,” said Murang’a Woman Representative Betty Maina.
Ms Maina said the biggest threat to Mt Kenya in 2027 would be going into the election while “screaming at a president who will be re-elected”, which could complicate the region’s development agenda until 2032.
“The presidency is like a dairy cow, you do not milk it while screaming at it. You pamper and treat it well. Government goes where it is loved,” she said.
But with former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua ramping up political activity in the region and unveiling the Democracy for Citizens Party (DCP) as Mt Kenya’s special-purpose vehicle for 2027, things are becoming increasingly difficult for Ruto loyalists.
“I want to make it very clear that DCP has two main agendas: to kick President Ruto out of power through the 2027 vote and to remove all his loyalists from leadership,” said Mr Gachagua.
Mr Kiunjuri dismissed the remarks as “Mr Gachagua’s wishful thinking,” adding: “At worst, we will ensure Mt Kenya splits its votes, either by half or in majority, in favour of President Ruto.”
Laikipia East MP Mwangi Kiunjuri.
Mr Gachagua countered: “I am aware that my campaigns have caused panic in the President’s camp, and his loyalists are busy shopping for alternative political parties to ride on in 2027.”
He further claimed: “President Ruto is on the verge of forming a new party that will be an alliance of fringe parties, many of them from Mt Kenya.”
Mr Gachagua alleged: “We know that the President’s loyalists have been briefed to infiltrate all major parties that do not support his re-election. We have double agents who, while pretending to back Ruto’s one-term campaign, are working hard to kill any party that could make that movement succeed.”
Panic
According to Mr Jamleck Kamau, a former ally of retired President Uhuru Kenyatta, “The panic in Ruto’s camp is grave.”
“I want to confess to you... The tricks Ruto is using are not new. We tried using money, threats, and state agencies to help Mr Raila Odinga win in 2022, but we failed. We painfully learnt that the will of the people is supreme,” he said.
Mr Kamau, once a staunch Jubilee Party member, explained: “That’s why many of us in the former president’s corner have shifted alliances in pursuit of the people’s will... Some have gone to Mr Gachagua, others to President Ruto.”
Now a DCP member, Mr Kamau added: “Mr Kenyatta has confided in some of us that he is only interested in respecting the will of the people and will not be actively involved in 2027 politics.”
He said: “All Jubilee Party members have been left without a shepherd and are free to join formations of their choice without invoking the name of the former President.”
This view is supported by nominated MP Ms Sabina Chege, who recently said on television: “We are a party abandoned by our founders and are busy rejuvenating ourselves in the best way possible.”
While Ms Chege is loyal to President Ruto and has been working to wrest control of Jubilee from Mr Kenyatta, another wing led by Jeremiah Kioni is loyal to former Interior CS Dr Fred Matiang’i’s presidential bid.
However, Jubilee Party chairman Mr Torome Saitoti backs DCP and Mr Gachagua, alongside Wiper Party leader Mr Kalonzo Musyoka, DAP-Kenya boss Mr Eugene Wamalwa, and Trans Nzoia Governor Mr George Natembeya.
Other Jubilee members who have shifted allegiance to Mr Gachagua include Starehe MP Amos Mwago, former Limuru MP Mr Peter Mwathi, former Kiambu Town MP Mr Jude Njomo, and former Mwea MP Mr Kabinga wa Thayu.
Those now backing President Ruto alongside Ms Chege include Bahati MP Ms Irene Njoki and Kinangop MP Mr Kwenya Thuku.
Bahati MP Irene Njoki addresses journalists at Bahati Police Station on a previous occasion.
Mr Kenyatta’s cousin, Mr Kung’u Muigai, told the Nation: “While the former Head of State supports the Jubilee Party remaining active and independent, he has not endorsed anyone for the top seat.”
He added: “What I know is that he’s very passionate about the youth taking charge of their destiny and having a people-centric leader in power.”
Mr Muigai continued: “Mr Kenyatta is free to come out openly in support of a presidential candidate... You know he speaks his mind well, has experience, and we should not hear it from proxies. He should declare it himself to end the confusion.”
But Mr Sovinga wa Bibiana, a close ally of Mr Kenyatta, said: “Read our lips... We are in the anti-Ruto alliance. Personally, I’m in Mr Gachagua’s camp, alongside my Jubilee Party chairman. Mr Kenyatta has told us to feel free and exercise free will.”
Mr Gachagua said: “We know that Jubilee members loyal to President Ruto plan to use a Murang’a-based politician to found yet another party to poach some of our principals.”
He added: “That’s why Ruto’s allies have been sending feelers to Kalonzo, Wamalwa, and Natembeya to support his re-election bid and abandon the one-term campaign.”
According to Mr Gachagua, all these manoeuvres have one thing in common: Mt Kenya.
“With over 8 million potential votes in 2027, Mt Kenya is seen as the region where the next president will be made. That’s why it has become a battleground for all formations backing President Ruto. His allies here know the threat we pose and are working hard to kill our movement to protect him,” he said.
Amid this political confusion, the Kikuyu Council of Elders, through its chairman Mr Wachira Kiago, issued new guidelines regarding Mt Kenya.
He stated that the region currently recognises Mr Kenyatta as its chief advisor and Mr Gachagua as its political leader.
“The community is open to engaging all leaders and political parties across the country. But the voter will make the final choice. We welcome development from the government as a right—not as a vote trade,” he said.
“Mt Kenya is not a gateless, doorless, or windowless structure. Rather, it is a well-built house with proper ventilation. We will make our 2027 decision through boardroom consultations and consensus, but public participation will be the driving force.”
He concluded: “Of all acts of bad governance, let us not entertain abductions, extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, or persecution. Human life must at all times remain sacred and should only be taken by God the Creator in His own many ways.”
