NAIROBI, Kenya — Kenya Kwanza leaders have sought to downplay the significance of the United Democratic Alliance’s (UDA) crushing defeat in the Ol Kalou parliamentary by-election, insisting the outcome does not diminish the coalition’s political strength in the Mt. Kenya region ahead of the 2027 General Election.
The remarks came a day after Democracy for the Citizens Party (DCP) candidate Sammy Kamau Ngotho Waweru secured a landslide victory with 35,440 votes, defeating UDA candidate Samuel Muchina Nyaga, who garnered 5,450 votes in one of the most closely watched by-elections in recent years.
Speaking in Nairobi, UDA Secretary-General Hassan Omar said the ruling party had accepted the outcome and respected the decision made by the people of Ol Kalou.
He argued that the constituency had historically been a Jubilee Party stronghold and maintained that UDA would continue competing aggressively across the Mt. Kenya region despite the setback.
“Even if the results were even worse, if there was another election tomorrow, we would still contest it. If there is another election anywhere in Mt. Kenya West, we will be there again and again. We will not run away,” Omar said.
He also noted that Jubilee, which previously held the seat, suffered an even bigger setback after its candidate attracted only a small fraction of the votes cast.
Meanwhile, leaders from the Mt. Kenya East region dismissed suggestions that the Ol Kalou outcome reflected the political mood across the wider region, saying their support for President William Ruto remained intact.
Speaking during a funeral service in Kiang’ondu, Chuka Igambang’ombe Constituency, Cabinet Secretary for Public Service, Human Capital Development and Special Programmes Geoffrey Ruku said Mt. Kenya East had already made its political choice and would continue backing President William Ruto and Deputy President Prof. Kithure Kindiki.
“We are not worried about the results of the Ol Kalou by-election. Mt. Kenya West can make its own political decisions, but as Mt. Kenya East, we have already decided. We will remain in government and continue supporting President Ruto and Deputy President Kindiki for a second term,” Ruku said.
He said leaders from the region would continue pursuing greater economic and political empowerment to strengthen Mt. Kenya East’s bargaining position and secure a larger share of national development projects and resources.
Chuka/Igambang’ombe MP Patrick Munene echoed the sentiments, saying leaders would continue championing the region’s interests through a united political front while remaining firmly within the Kenya Kwanza administration.
The Ol Kalou by-election attracted national attention after evolving into a high-stakes political contest between President Ruto’s UDA and the opposition-aligned DCP led by former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua. The campaigns featured intense mobilisation by leaders from both camps and were accompanied by allegations of voter inducement and isolated incidents of violence on polling day.
While DCP has celebrated the landslide victory as evidence of shifting political dynamics in the Mt. Kenya region, Kenya Kwanza leaders insist the outcome was constituency-specific and does not reflect the coalition’s broader support across the region.
Political attention is now shifting to whether the Ol Kalou result marks the beginning of a broader political realignment in Mt. Kenya or remains an isolated electoral outcome as parties prepare for the 2027 General Election.
