President William Ruto and ODM leader Raila Odinga during Kenya’s African Nations Championships match against DR Congo at the Moi International Sports Centre Kasarani, last Sunday.
President William Ruto and ODM leader Raila Odinga have given the strongest hint yet that their parties could be on the path to forming a coalition vehicle ahead of the 2027 elections.
To start with, President Ruto of the ruling UDA party, and Mr Odinga of ODM, have announced plans for a quarterly joint Kenya Kwanza-ODM Parliamentary Group meetings to take stock of the implementation of the 10-point agenda signed between their political parties.
This comes even as the President begins to pull all the stops in thawing resistance against the UDA-ODM political deal in a strategy designed to win the backing of the Orange party which continues to enjoy considerable support in Nyanza, Western and Coast.
Insiders say the President is keen on addressing grievances raised by some top ODM officials, including demands to compensate victims of protests, allocating more resources to counties and putting an end to police killings and abductions, as a means to contain the growing rebellion against his political deal with Mr Odinga.
ODM Secretary-General Edwin Sifuna – who seems to have the backing of Mr Odinga – has been in the forefront calling for his party’s walkout from the deal over failure by UDA to implement the 10-point agenda deal.
Mr Odinga’s ODM is said to have told the President that full implementation of the MoU is what will determine a 2027 pre-election alliance. The party also believes selling President Ruto in their bastions would only be a viable if the deal is honoured.
President Ruto and Mr Odinga, on Wednesday, constituted a five-member technical team to oversee the implementation of the 10-point agenda as well as the recommendations of the National Dialogue Committee (NADCO) report. NADCO was a bipartisan negotiation between Kenya Kwanza and Azimio La Umoja-One Kenya Coalition following the opposition-led protests in 2023.
The technical team will be chaired by former ODM nominated Senator Agnes Zani and includes Fatuma Ibrahim, Kevin Kiarie, Gabriel Oguda, and Javas Bigambo, as members.
The report recommended radical reforms, including establishment of the Office of the Leader of Official Opposition and Office of the Prime Minister.
Most of the recommendations in the document – apart from restructuring and reconstitution of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) – remain unfulfilled.
Apart from committing to ensure full implementation of the NADCO report, President Ruto has also promised to protect the right to peaceful assembly and compensation for victims of protests as well as fight against corruption.
Other agenda items to be fast-tracked include inclusivity in public service, protecting, strengthening devolution as well as promoting and protecting livelihoods of the youth.
“Dr Ruto and Mr Odinga, acting in their capacities as party leaders, agreed to establish a broad framework for cooperation and collaboration across all political formations,” partly reads the joint communiqué signed by the duo.
President William Ruto (right) with ODM leader Raila Odinga during the third National Executive Retreat at the KCB Leadership Centre in Kajiado County.
“In executing its mandate under the guidance of the Principals (Ruto and Raila), the committee shall undertake inclusive and extensive consultations with members of the public and all relevant stakeholders, including the arms of government, government departments, independent commissions, civil society, religious institutions and private sectors…”
The two leaders seek to ensure the implementation of the MoU is informed by diverse perspectives so as to address the needs and aspirations of Kenyans. The committee is under instruction to start its work immediately and will be reporting to the two leaders every two months. The team will also submit its progress reports to a joint Kenya Kwanza-ODM Parliamentary Group on quarterly basis.
“The Parliamentary Group will hold its first sitting on August 18. A final report, detailing the status of the MoU’s implementation, will be released to the public on March 7, 2026, making the one-year anniversary of its signing,” said the two leaders.
Mr Odinga has already ruled out an early exit from the broad-based government formed last year, which saw some of his closest allies appointed to the Cabinet and other advisory roles. He affirmed that he is fully aligned with President Ruto, at least until the next elections.
“We have said that we are in the broad-based government until 2027. Beyond 2027 are issues that we will discuss at the appropriate time, and the decision will be made by party members, not Raila Odinga alone,” the ODM leader said in a recent exclusive interview with the Nation.
Former Prime Minister and ODM leader Raila Odinga during an interview at his home in Karen, Nairobi on July 19, 2025.
Mr Odinga has since dismissed ongoing speculation about President Ruto’s chances of securing a second term, insisting that only the Kenyan people can make that determination through the ballot. "It’s not a matter of one term or two. The real question is; who decides? It is the people who hold that power at the ballot," he said.
He emphasised that electoral outcomes are tied to performance, not political slogans or threats, espousing his commitment to the implementation of the UDA-ODM agreement.
"It can be one term, it can be two terms, or even half a term. Ultimately, it is the people who will decide through elections.”
National Assembly Budget and Appropriations Committee chairman Sam Atandi hinted at a President Ruto-Tosha movement resulting from a political deal between ODM and UDA to give the president a second term.
National Assembly Chairperson on Budget Committee Samuel Atandi.
The Alego Usonga lawmaker, who was a guest at a women empowerment function in Gem, Yala sub-county, said the two outfits will work together and support President Ruto’s second term bid.
“We are going to form an alliance with the Ruto- led UDA in 2027 and we shall have him re-elected to serve his second term,” said Mr Atandi.
He said: “We owe president Ruto a token of appreciation, he stood with Raila Odinga in 2007 in an election. The latter became the prime minister.”
Uriri MP Mark Nyamita said: “We have not seen any president who has considered us more than Ruto. No one will make us change our minds, some people are telling us to get out of the broad-based and seek another opportunity, we shall not do it.”
Key components of this roadmap include; creation of a compensation fund for protest victims and their families, national dialogue forums, a youth employment strategy, a joint anti-corruption campaign, and a bipartisan economic recovery plan.
Other action points involve: a joint legislative agenda in Parliament, a shared vision for strengthening devolution, roll-out of affordable housing in opposition strongholds, inclusive public appointments, a unified communication strategy, and early coalition planning—especially after ODM’s National Delegates Convention (NDC) slated for October.
