President William Ruto ’s Kenya Kwanza coalition has mounted an aggressive bid to wrestle Trans Nzoia from the opposition, putting Governor George Natembeya under growing pressure as rival camps scramble to control the county ahead of the 2027 General Election.
The ruling coalition has stepped up mobilisation in the vote-rich county, deploying National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang’ula and President Ruto’s aide Farouk Kibet to sell the administration’s development record while openly backing potential challengers to Mr Natembeya.
The offensive comes as the governor faces a radically different political landscape from the one that propelled him to a landslide victory in 2022.
Mr Natembeya, who was elected on the Democratic Action Party of Kenya (DAP-K) ticket, has fallen out with party leader Eugene Wamalwa and signalled his departure from the party. He has since moved closer to the Linda Mwananchi opposition formation linked to Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna and indicated that he and his allies could form a new party to give Western Kenya a broader national political platform.
Linda Mwananchi rally: Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna (right), Trans Nzoia County Governor George Natembeya (left), Siaya County Governor James Orengo and Embakasi East MP Babu Owino (centre), who are in the Linda Mwananchi team, during a rally at Moi’s Bridge in Uasin Gishu County on July 25, 2026
Photo credit: Jared Nyataya | Nation
“I am seeking a second term since I still want to finish what I started regarding transforming this county,” he has said on his political platforms.
His political realignment has given Kenya Kwanza an opening as it seeks to consolidate Western Kenya and find a candidate capable of mounting a credible challenge to the incumbent.
Last week, Mr Wetang’ula and Mr Kibet led a fresh mobilisation drive in Trans Nzoia, traversing the county on September 8 and 10 for a women’s economic empowerment event at Cheptumbelio in Saboti and a boda boda empowerment event in Endebess.
Beneath the empowerment initiatives was a clear political message: Kenya Kwanza wants Trans Nzoia in its column in 2027.
Mr Wetang’ula publicly fronted Kenya’s Ambassador to UN-Habitat Susan Nakhumicha as a potential challenger to Mr Natembeya, while Mr Kibet backed Kiminini MP Maurice Kakai Bisau.
National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang’ula during the Kenya Kwanza Kisumu County Tuk Tuk Sacco empowerment event on August 2.
Photo credit: Alex Odhiambo | Nation Media Group
The leaders said their objective was to ensure the county joins the ruling coalition, with a strong candidate capable of defeating the governor.
Nakhumicha gets Wetang’ula’s backing
Ms Nakhumicha’s emergence has added a new dimension to the contest. Mr Wetang’ula endorsed the former Health Cabinet Secretary for the governorship in June 2026 during a meeting with Trans Nzoia elders and opinion leaders, urging other Kenya Kwanza aspirants to rally behind her.
The endorsement has, however, complicated the race within the United Democratic Alliance (UDA), where several politicians are seeking the party’s gubernatorial ticket.
Ms Nakhumicha, who is Kenya’s Permanent Representative to UN-Habitat, has not declared the party on whose ticket she will contest and has not resigned from her diplomatic position. She nevertheless says she is ready for the race.
Kenya’s Representative to the United Nations Habitat Susan Nakhumicha. She will run against Trans Nzoia governor George Natembeya in 2027.
Photo credit: File I Nation Media Group
“I have interacted with the residents in all 25 wards and they are yearning for change. They feel let down by the current leadership and I know exactly how to rescue this county if elected Governor,” she said during a campaign trail.
An ally of President Ruto and Mr Wetang’ula, Ms Nakhumicha contested the Trans Nzoia Woman Representative seat in 2022 on a Ford Kenya ticket but lost to UDA’s Lilian Siyoi.
If elected governor, she would become the first woman to occupy the county’s top office. She has made women’s leadership part of her campaign, citing Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu and Kenya’s Governors Anne Waiguru of Kirinyaga and Gladys Wanga of Homa Bay as examples.
“Women have contributed a lot to the economic development of this country and deserve to be given equal opportunity to serve in leadership,” she has said.
UDA’s nomination headache
The bigger problem for Kenya Kwanza could be what happens before the general election. While Ms Nakhumicha enjoys Mr Wetang'ula's backing, UDA faces the challenge of managing several politicians who want the same ticket.
Mr Bisau, who has twice contested the governorship, in 2013 and 2017, is also seeking the UDA nomination. In 2017, former governor Patrick Khaemba defeated him 135,325 votes to 92,561.
He joined the 2022 race but stepped aside in favour of Mr Natembeya. Five years later, he is back, accusing the incumbent of neglecting development while concentrating on building his political profile.
“The current Governor has failed the electorate in terms of development. He has focused much on raising his political profile instead of delivering on his mandate. I want to fix the mess,” he said.
Mr Bisau has rejected attempts to portray Ms Nakhumicha as an automatic Kenya Kwanza candidate, insisting the coalition’s nominee should emerge through a credible process.
Former Kiminini MP Dr Chris Wamalwa is also seeking the seat after leaving Ford Kenya for UDA. He lost to Mr Natembeya in 2022, receiving 79,020 votes against the governor’s 158,919. Dr Wamalwa has since sought to rebuild his influence in UDA and declared interest in the party’s secretary-general position.
“Our county has lagged in terms of development owing to bad leadership. My development track record is self-explanatory since my days as an MP for Kiminini,” he has said.
Another UDA aspirant, Isaac Kogo, a former Health County Executive Committee Member under Mr Khaemba, is also in the race.We need action and not slogans to change Trans Nzoia. Health is ailing, agriculture is no longer profitable; I will fix this,” Mr Kogo said.
Development as a political weapon
As the rival camps position themselves, development has emerged as a central weapon in the battle for Trans Nzoia.
Kenya Kwanza leaders have pointed to the ongoing Sh15 billion affordable housing programme, more than 300 kilometres of tarmacked roads and modern markets planned in each sub-county, including the multimillion-shilling Kiminini Modern Market. They have also highlighted plans to upgrade the Kitale-Kapenguria road to a dual carriageway and announced that the national government will release Sh1 billion for the upgrading of Kitale County Hospital, which had been closed by the county government.
The announcements are part of an effort to convince voters that working with the national government will translate into faster development.
Mr Wetang’ula has accused opposition politicians of blackmailing the national government and misleading residents about its development agenda.
“We are working to ensure no region is left behind and I can assure you we will not leave this county to be mismanaged and be left out of development,” he said in Endebess.
He cited the reduction of fertiliser prices from Sh7,500 to Sh2,500 and other government programmes as evidence of the administration’s commitment to the food-basket county.
Mr Wetang’ula and Mr Kibet have also accused Mr Natembeya of failing to work with the national government, arguing that the strained relationship has slowed implementation of projects.
“We want you to elect leaders who will deliver for you and will work with the national government to ensure development is realised to all corners of this county,” Mr Kibet said in Saboti.
Farouk Kibet, personal assistant to the President, addresses the audience during the official launch of Shield Okumba SACCO and the Women and Youth Empowerment Forum at Midika Sports Grounds in Muhoroni on July 25, 2025. Photo:
Photo credit: Alex Odhiambo| Nation Media Group
Mr Natembeya’s camp is expected to campaign on his administration’s development record, with agriculture and agro-industrialisation at the centre of its economic ambitions.
The numbers that make Trans Nzoia a prize
In the 2022 presidential election, the late Raila Odinga, running on the Azimio ticket, won 132,404 votes in Trans Nzoia against President Ruto’s 116,732, giving the opposition an advantage of more than 15,000 votes.
Mr Natembeya, however, won the gubernatorial race convincingly with 158,919 votes against Dr Wamalwa’s 79,020, according to IEBC gazetted results.
The county currently has slightly about 398,000 registered voters. IEBC county coordinator Patrick Wanyama has said the commission is targeting 500,000 registered voters by 2027 through continuous voter registration.
For President Ruto, flipping the county would add a substantial bloc to his re-election effort and represent a political breakthrough in a region where the opposition has historically held an advantage.
For Mr Natembeya, retaining the governor’s seat would demonstrate that his political influence survived his break with DAP-K and his shift towards a broader opposition platform.
Can Natembeya survive the new arithmetic?
Mr Natembeya has the advantage of incumbency and a strong 2022 electoral record. That is his strongest asset. He won that election with 158,919 votes, defeating his closest opponent who got79,020 votes, according to the IEBC’s gazetted results.
But the political machinery behind that victory has since changed. His split with Mr Wamalwa has disrupted the DAP-K structure that helped deliver his first-term victory, while his links to Linda Mwananchi and possible plans for a new political vehicle could either broaden his base or expose him to a fresh battle over alliances and support.
On the Kenya Kwanza side, Mr Wetang’ula’s early backing of Ms Nakhumicha has signaled the coalition’s intentions, but the crowded UDA field presents its own danger. If Ms Nakhumicha, Mr Bisau, Dr Wamalwa and Mr Kogo remain divided, Mr Natembeya could benefit from a fragmented challenge. If Kenya Kwanza succeeds in uniting behind one candidate, however, the governor could face a substantially tougher contest than in 2022.
The county’s agricultural economy, particularly its dependence on maize production, is also likely to make development, jobs and economic opportunity central campaign issues.
Businesswoman Dorcas Nyambura Njenga, who is seeking the seat on a Jubilee Party ticket, has widened the field further.
A former World Vision Kenya employee, social worker and humanitarian involved in community empowerment, Ms Njenga says she wants more inclusive leadership and has identified landlessness, poverty and economic inequality among the county’s biggest challenges.
“We are going to do deliberate politics and ensure that we have more women in the political space; we have to fight for our space, our children and generations to come because as women we are up to the task,” she said.
