A major political battle is brewing in the run-up to the Ol Kalou Constituency by-election, pitting former President Uhuru Kenyatta’s Jubilee Party against Rigathi Gachagua’s Democracy for Citizens Party (DCP).
At the centre of the dispute is which party will field a candidate once the seat is declared vacant by the National Assembly Speaker and the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) sets a by-election date.
While Mr Gachagua has declared his presidential ambition for 2027, Mr Kenyatta is said to be backing former Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i for the top seat. However, Kikuyu Council of Elders chairman Wachira Kiago said on Sunday that efforts were underway to reconcile the two factions and forge a united front ahead of the next General Election.
Already, tensions have escalated, with DCP dismissing Jubilee as a “state-engineered vehicle of conflict” in Ol Kalou. Jubilee, in turn, has described DCP as a “noisy and disrespectful outfit” seeking to destabilise the area.
The seat fell vacant following the death of area MP David Kiaraho on March 29, 2026 at Nairobi Hospital. He was buried on April 10, 2026, in Kiambu County. Kiaraho was serving his third term after winning the 2022 election on a Jubilee ticket, where he garnered 24,058 votes against UDA’s Samuel Kamau Ngotho, who polled 19,380 votes.
As Jubilee and DCP jostle for control, Deputy President Prof Kithure Kindiki has declared that the United Democratic Alliance (UDA) will also field a candidate, saying the by-election will be used to test Gachagua’s influence.
“We are coming there… We will field a candidate and the results will show that Mr Gachagua has been all talk and no action. We will prove in Ol Kalou who truly calls the shots in the Mountain,” Prof Kindiki said during a recent tour of Meru County.
DCP’s Council of Eminent Persons chair Maina Kamanda, however, maintained that political momentum in the Mt Kenya region is shifting and urged allies to rally behind Mr Gachagua. He said the party is conducting internal consultations to identify its candidate.
He argued that no aspirant can win in the region without DCP’s support, saying the party has become central to the region’s political realignment ahead of 2027.
“We must send a message to President William Ruto’s government that Mr Gachagua is the political king of the Mountain. Ol Kalou must be the test case,” Mr Kamanda said.
United Opposition agreement
On the Jubilee side, Deputy Party Leader Jeremiah Kioni insisted that the seat belongs to his party under existing opposition arrangements.
“We have an agreement within the united opposition that where a seat falls vacant, the party that held it retains the right to field a candidate. That should apply in Ol Kalou as well,” Mr Kioni said.
He accused rivals of attempting to distort opposition unity arrangements, insisting that Jubilee remains the rightful contender.
According to political analyst Professor Masibo Munala, winning the seat is critical for the United Opposition, especially in the Mt Kenya region, where Mr. Gachagua has significant support.
“While Jubilee may want to reinvent itself, DCP currently appears more popular because its leader is visible on the ground,” said Mr Masibo.
“There is a need for Uhuru Kenyatta, Fred Matiang’i, and Mr Gachagua to come together and unite in campaigning in Nyandarua and defeat UDA.”
Mr Masibo added that while Mr Kioni may want Jubilee to win the seat, fielding multiple candidates could hurt opposition unity.
“What if both Jubilee and DCP field candidates and DCP wins? Where will that leave Jubilee? Jubilee should not field candidates for the sake of it, as Kioni did with Musalia Mudavadi in 201 2013 and we all know what happened,” said the don.
