Party after party: How crowded Mt Kenya field threatens Gachagua grand plan

Numerous political parties appear to have been activated in the vote-rich region, with some registered in recent weeks — and all with an eye on the 2027 election, as observers say President William Ruto’s strategists focus on having various presidential contenders from the former vote bloc turn insurgent. 

Apart from DCP, Jubilee, PLP, TSP, CCK, PNU, other parties in the region include; former Murang’a Governor Mwangi Wa Iria’s Usawa Kwa Wote Party, Tujibebe Wakenya associated with ICT Cabinet Secretary William Kabogo, Ubuntu People’s Forum linked to his Trade counterparty Lee Kinyanjui, Democratic Party, Safina Party linked to Jimi Wanjigi and Farmers Party. 

Others include Future Party of Kenya, The New Democrats Party Kenya National Congress, The National Party (TNP), The National Alliance, Mwangaza Party and National Democratic Movement (NDM).

This splintering is being driven by growing political disillusionment, generational shifts, and ideological realignments, analysts say. 

While President Ruto’s United Democratic Alliance (UDA) still commands significant influence in the region, the internal friction between him and his estranged deputy, Mr Gachagua, has fuelled perceptions of betrayal and exclusion—especially among Mt Kenya leaders who feel sidelined despite their strong support in the 2022 elections.

Mr Gachagua’s DCP is being positioned as a new vehicle to reclaim the region's political identity and negotiate better stakes nationally. 

Read: Return of regional parties and kingpins

The ex-DP has asserted that Mt Kenya has officially cut political ties with President Ruto and will not back his re-election bid in 2027.

“We are finished with UDA. Never again will we go to an election without our own political party. Last time, we attended the wedding in the groom’s car, but when we reached the river, he asked us to step out and gave others a ride,” he said.

However, the party's reception remains uncertain as rival outfits, such as PLP, Jubilee, PNU, TSP refuse to yield ground easily. 

Each is building grassroots support in key counties like Nyeri, Murang’a, Kiambu, Kirinyaga, Nyandarua, Meru, Embu, Tharaka Nithi, Nakuru and Laikipia counties.

Former President Uhuru Kenyatta’s Jubilee Party, though battered and diminished, still boasts remnants of loyalty and structure in the region. Its leadership insists the party is not done yet and is banking on anti-Ruto sentiment and nostalgia to spark a revival. 

Jubilee Secretary General Jeremiah Kioni has, however, vowed that the party will back former Interior Cabinet Secretary Dr Fred Matiang’i, distancing himself from Mr Gachagua’s camp.

“Matiang’i is the one who reached out. Anybody can express a desire to run for president, Matiang'i just expressed his desire,” Mr Kioni quipped.

Mr Kiunjuri, who is also the Laikipia East MP however, told off former DP Gachagua, over what he terms as “plans to muzzle existing political parties in Mt Kenya region.”

Read: 'Hustler Season 2: How Gachagua stole Ruto’s script

“The more the political parties in this region, the merrier, as the election of leaders will be determined by an individual’s ability to bring change,” said Mr Kiunjuri.

“We have been electing our leaders not based on political parties, but based on those who will work for us. That’s why we have no worries— if people want to form parties, let them form whatever they want. But for us, our party is for work. No matter what you name your party, it is your work that will get you elected,” he went on.

His sentiments come amidst calls by Mr Gachagua to have Mt Kenya residents rally behind his newly formed DCP. 

The MP said the calls to join the new party have nothing to do with inclusion or empowerment, but rather self-centered ambitions.

Ms Karua, a veteran politician and vocal critic of Kenya Kwanza, has meanwhile transformed PLP into a resistance movement aimed at uniting progressive voices and countering “State capture and constitutional subversion.”

Former Bahati MP Kimani Ngunjiri has also acquired a party – Future Party of Kenya, and seeks to chart his own path in Mt Kenya region.

A former ally-turned-critic of Mr Gachagua, Mr Ngunjiri has since come out as one of his fiercest opponents, as he seeks to revive the little known outfit.

During a recent party retreat in Eldoret town, the former legislator lashed out at Mr Gachagua, accusing him of perpetuating divisive politics.

“Gachagua seems to be staging wars allover from within Mt Kenya region and in other areas but will go nowhere with such a strategy aimed at fighting everyone,” he said. 

The explosion of political outfits in the region raises fears of diluting Mt Kenya’s bargaining power nationally. 

Political observers opine that “a fragmented Mt Kenya cannot negotiate meaningfully at the national table.”

The region, which has produced three presidents and has often voted as a bloc, now risks entering 2027 as a house divided, despite having one of the largest voting constituencies.

As political heavyweights jostle to inherit the mountain, the future of the region’s unity remains uncertain. 

Whether a consensus candidate or coalition can emerge to rally the region remains to be seen. 

But one thing is clear: the battle for Mt Kenya’s soul is well underway, and the next two years will be defined by shifting loyalties, power plays, and strategic realignments.

Political analyst Martin Oloo says that Kenya’s politics have taken on a new twist following the political rapprochement between President Ruto’s UDA and Raila Odinga’s ODM. 

Read: Gachagua’s ground game: Delicate balancing act on the big stage 

The unexpected betrayal and bolting out of the Azimio coalition by ODM, he says, speaks to the need to craft a political marriage beyond 2027. 

“For Ruto and Raila to lose in 2027, there needs to be one big coalition of an alternative political juggernaut such as NARC against KANU in 2002. If opposition do not come together and front one candidate, Ruto and Raila will sponsor some minority Presidential candidates who will in turn, chip away some of the votes,” Mr Oloo says. 

He adds that for now, Mr Gachagua and Wiper leader Kalonzo Musyoka among other opposition luminaries “have no option but to stick together.”

“They must sacrifice for each other. They must calculate and put one candidate, not because he is the best, but rather that he can be the anchor around which political organisation happens,” he says.

TSP party leader Mr Kiunjuri warned Mt Kenya region that poor political decisions could have serious consequences: “If you gamble with politics in 2027, you will find yourself gnashing your teeth after singing songs led by people who are formless and have no vision.”

Some individuals, who may not be interested in running for political offices are also in the latest craze to enlist new outfits with plans of selling them in the run up to the 2027 General Elections.

Selling and buying of political parties have since become a booming business, mostly because of fears by politicians of being rigged out in party primaries.

Some top political leaders have also in the past ended up partyless after rival factions took off with party certificates. Some of these incidents have forced ambitious politicians to have their own political party to secure their election tickets and for purposes of negotiating for coalitions.

Read: Gachagua’s gamble: New party, old foes in fresh power battle

The billions of shillings for political parties has also made running a political party a lucrative business. At least 48 political parties that participated in the 2022 elections are benefiting from the millions of taxpayers’ money to run their affairs.

Dozens of parties that have never benefited from millions of shillings disbursed by the exchequer have for the first time after the 2022 elections received the monies, making running of political parties a lucrative business. This was after the changes to the Political Parties Act.

The Act provides that 70 per cent of the money be distributed proportionately, based on the total number of votes secured by a political party in the preceding election.

Another 15 per cent is to be distributed proportionately to parties based on the number of candidates from special interest groups elected in the preceding General Election.

Ten per cent shall be shared out proportionately to parties, based on the number of representatives from the party elected in the preceding General Election while the remaining five per cent is for administration expenses by the ORPP.

The provision implies that any political party that participates in a General Election stands to benefit from the funds, based on the number of votes attributed to its candidates, even if a majority of them lose at the ballot.

Some of the political parties targeting Mt Kenya region:

1. Democracy for the Citizens Party 

2. Jubilee Party

3. People’s Liberation Party

4. Party of National Unity

5. The Service Party 

6. Chama Cha Kazi

7. Usawa Kwa Wote Party

8. Democratic Party

9. Ubuntu People's Forum 

10. Tujibebe Wakenya Party 

11. Farmers Party

12. Safina Party

13. Kenya National Congress

14. The New Democrats Party

15. The National Party 

16. The National Alliance

17. Mwangaza Party

18. National Democratic Movement 

19. Future Party of Kenya

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