While other politicians will today through next Friday battle it out in gruelling party primaries, a growing number of allies of leading presidential contenders Raila Odinga and William Ruto have been spared competition for party tickets by being handed direct nomination.
With a new law allowing consensus and deal-making as legitimate alternatives to competitive nominations, parties, often wary of fallouts after the primaries, have taken this route while keen to retain as many of its followers intact as possible.
The deals have also been made in consideration of coalition agreements, with aspirants in affiliate parties asked to step down for others. Yesterday, Siaya Senator James Orengo and former Mombasa Senator Hassan Omar became the latest politicians to earn direct gubernatorial race tickets in Mr Odinga’s Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) and Dr Ruto’s United Democratic Alliance (UDA), respectively.
Rarieda MP Otiende Amollo, Opiyo Wandayi of Ugunja, Opondo Kaluma (Homa Bay Town), Eve Obara (Kabondo Kasipul), Millie Odhiambo (Suba North) and Lilian Gogo from Rangwe also received their direct tickets from ODM that also saw Dr Oburu Oginga, Mr Odinga’s elder brother, handed a ticket to contest the Siaya Senate seat.
Out of the 14 constituencies in Siaya and Homa Bay counties, the fight in Alego Usonga, Bondo, Gem, Ndhiwa and Karachuonyo will go to the wire after Ms Mumma announced that the primaries will go on as planned.
This means that Sam Atandi (Alego Usonga), Gideon Ochanda (Bondo), Elisha Odhiambo (Gem), Martin Owino (Ndhiwa) and Adipo Okuome (Karachuonyo) will face their rivals after the party failed to reach consensus.
While ODM has not indicated those to receive direct tickets in Kisumu and Migori counties, the Nation has learnt that Kisumu Governor Anyang Nyong’o is the preferred candidate to fly the party’s flag. On the other hand, it is not clear whether ODM supporters in Migori will be left to elect their next governor or a direct ticket will be issued to either Migori Senator Ochilo Ayacko or Woman Rep Pamela Odhiambo.
In Mombasa, Dr Ruto yesterday settled on Mr Omar to fly its flag in the governor race while Mohamed Ali (Nyali), Mbarak Hamid (Kisauni), Karisa Nzai Mnyika (Jomvu), Isaac Malilah (Changamwe), Omar Shallo (Mvita) and Mohamed Mwahima (Likoni) secured direct tickets to run for the respective parliamentary seats.
On the ODM side at the Coast, Mvita MP Abdulswamad Nassir, who is eyeing the Mombasa gubernatorial seat, is among the lucky ones who have receive a direct ticket.
Others are Likoni MP Mishi Mboko and Jomvu MP Badi Twalib who are defending their seats as well as Changamwe MP Omar Mwinyi, former Kisauni MP Rashid Bedzimba, Senator Mohammed Faki and Nyali parliamentary hopeful Said Abdalla.
In Kwale, ODM only held nominations for Msambweni Constituency in Kwale which Mr Hassan Mwakulonda won.
In Taita Taveta, Governor Granton Samboja secured the Jubilee ticket and will face off with UDA’s John Mruttu. Mwatate MP Andrew Mwadime, who also wants to unseat Samboja, decamped from ODM to the Communist Party of Kenya where he got a direct ticket. In Kwale, Fatuma Achani also bagged a direct UDA ticket in the Kwale governor race against ODM’s Prof Hamadi Boga who is among the lucky to get a direct ticket.
Other deals Dr Ruto has brokered are that of Nairobi Senator Johnson Sakaja (Nairobi governor), former Labour Chief Administrative Secretary Patrick Ntutu (Narok governor), Cleophas Malala (Kakamega governor), Anne Waiguru (Kirinyaga governor), Mutahi Kahiga (Nyeri governor), Muthomi Njuki (Tharaka Nithi governor), Steve Lelegwe (Samburu senator).
Meru senator Mithika Linturi (Meru governor), Malindi MP Aisha Jumwa (Kilifi governor), and Kwale deputy governor Fatuma Achani (Kwale governor) . In Meru, UDA MP nominations were expected to be conducted in only Imenti South constituency where Jasper Muthomi (MC Jessy) would have squared it out with businessman Mwiti Kathara. But a last-minute deal yesterday saw Mr Muthomi withdraw in favour of Mr Kathara.
Of the nine MPs in Meru, only Igembe North’s Maoka Maore is in Azimio La Umoja. But aspirants for MCA and woman rep posts will have to square it out in the 45 wards, said Meru UDA coordinator Dr Kaberia Kubai.
In Mr Odinga’s ODM, Woman Rep Gladys Wanga (Homa Bay), former Kenya Electricity Transmission Company (Ketraco) managing director Fernandes Barasa (Kakamega), Wilbur Ottichilo (Vihiga), Abdulswamad Nassir (Mombasa) have been handed direct tickets in their respective governor races.
Reporting by Victor Raballa, Gitonga Marete, James Murimi, Alex Njeru, Stephen Munyiri and David Muchui
