ODM party leader Oburu Oginga and party chairperson Gladys Wanga during the party aspirants' consultative meeting in Kisumu on May 25, 2026.
Their rallies were spectacles of political theatre, awash with Orange hues that adorned podiums, campaign caravans, branded merchandise and the attire of devoted supporters.
At the height of its influence, the movement drew massive crowds wherever it pitched camp, projecting an image of a party firmly in command of its political base.
But as internal wrangles deepened and factional battles intensified, the tide slowly turned.
The once thriving gatherings began to thin out, and the frequency of the meetings dwindled dramatically.
Then came what many now view as the political requiem for the Linda Ground movement within ODM, delivered not through fiery rhetoric, but through a quiet yet unmistakably powerful message.
During Monday's ODM Nyanza aspirants' consultative meeting, Party Chairperson and Homa Bay Governor Gladys Wanga officially announced the burial of the Linda Ground slogan, declaring that the party would revert to its traditional rallying call.
According to Ms Wanga, the decision was necessitated by what she termed the hijacking of the initiative by the Siaya Governor James Orengo-led Linda Mwananchi faction, a development she said had transformed a strategy meant to consolidate the party's support base into a source of internal friction and political contestation.
The Linda Ground team was spearheaded by the ODM Party Leader Dr Oburu Oginga, his Deputies Governor Abdulswamad Nassir and Simba Arati, Chairperson Gladys Wanga, leader of the Minority Party in the National Assembly Mr Junet Mohamed among others.
ODM party leader Oburu Oginga and party chairperson Gladys Wanga during the party aspirants' consultative meeting in Kisumu on May 25, 2026.
According to Ms Wanga, they have reverted back to the original ODM with the slogan ‘Tuko Tayari’ in a bid to unite all the members and strengthen the outfit ahead of the 2027 General Elections.
“We had a movement called Linda Ground to consolidate our bases. But instead of coming up with their own movement, some people who did not have much imagination came to this Linda movement, stole it and called it something else, so we have left it for them and now we are ‘ODM Tuko Tayari’ to avoid confusion,” said Ms Wanga.
Her message was to various aspirants who had started or were planning to brand themselves as they commence campaigns on the ground, insisting that they do not want to create confusion on the materials they use to publicise themselves and the party.
“When you do your posters or any campaign material, the Party is ODM under Dr Oburu Oginga and the colour is Orange and anything else is a splinter group or planning to form their own party. There are no factions, the party is ODM,” said Ms Wanga.
But according to political commentators, the death of ‘Linda Ground’ is not only because of Linda Mwananchi, but a number of factors that led to its loss of the Orange colour and finally dying a few months after it was established.
For leaders from the Orange Party, a number of issues led to its fall, including funding cuts, control by a few officials, abandoning the people, failure to consult more and the growing popularity of the Orengo and Edwin Sifuna-led team.
Some people felt that from the onset, it never gained traction from the original ODM supporters and lacked credibility and the spirit of the late Odinga.
Speaking to the Nation, Siaya Governor James Orengo attributed the folding of their rival’s outfit to a lack of a clear message that resonated with the people and upheld the party’s ideology that saw people reject the Oburu team.
Siaya Governor James Orengo speaks to journalists at Kisumu International Airport on April 24, 2026.
Mr Orengo said the messaging of the Linda Ground faction was not selling to the public, yet they had many meetings, spent a lot of money on branding, but the outcome was not what they expected.
“Their messaging was not about the people; they spent a lot of time castigating me and my team. Our message, on the other hand, has always been pro-people, talking about the struggles the common mwananchi was going through,” said Mr Orengo.
He added that it was difficult for the Linda Ground team to balance pleasing the President with whom the party is partnering, and criticising the Broad-based government at the same time as an opposition party.
The growing popularity of the Linda Mwananchi also played a major role in crushing their spirits, and this was supported by the TIFA Pollster that revealed that 73 per cent of opposition supporters felt Linda Mwananchi is more popular than Linda Ground, which polled only 23 per cent.
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At some point, all the people referred to as fence-sitters started leaning towards the Linda Mwananchi faction and went against all the proposals being fronted by the top party leadership.
For instance, Kisumu Governor and ODM trustee Prof Anyang’ Nyongó differed sharply with Dr Oginga over zoning and the sidelining of the youthful leadership from within the party.
Disagreement over zoning with UDA also cast doubt on whether their protection of the ground was bearing fruit.
Governor Orengo now feels the decision to revert to the ODM Tuko Tayari initiative is attempting to ride on the popularity of the Linda Mwananchi that also came out in the opinion polls, revealing that the Orange outfit was still more popular than UDA and other parties.
ODM Chairperson Gladys Wanga speaks to the media on the second day of the political party's three-day retreat at Sarova Whitesands Beach Resort in Mombasa on May 4, 2026.
And immediately Ms Wanga announced the abolishment of Linda Ground, Suba North MP Millie Odhiambo, who has been accused of not taking either side, pronounced herself on the issue, saying she had warned about how the initiative was a bad idea.
“I said clearly that I am not Linda Ground or Linda Mwananchi but in ODM. I was told I am a fence-sitter; I am still fence-sitting or was the fence brought down? I am feeling justified with a million people,” said Ms Odhiambo ending with a laughing emoji.
On numerous occasions, she had questioned some of the actions by the top party leadership, including removal of Mr Sifuna as the ODM Secretary General, but her sentiments were ignored.
Her counterpart for Rarieda, Dr Otiende Amollo, is also on record warning that the removal of Mr Sifuna would leave an egg on the face of the top party leadership, but Dr Oginga ignored him.
Kisumu Woman Representative Ruth Odinga said the Linda Ground lost steam because they were not running with a clear vision of her brother Raila, who put people ahead of any decision.
“The team did not consider the power of the people like Raila used to do before signing any agreement, MoU, going to the referendum and many other major decisions,” said Ms Odinga.
She has always been against the establishment of the two factions, arguing that ODM needed a united front before going to any negotiations.
“I was against the factions from the start, but I was ignored. I insisted that we bring everybody on board in ODM before any negotiations, but some people castigated me. We cannot start saying ‘Two-term’ before the people give us the go-ahead; this meant that we were denying them their democratic right to choose what they believe is right for them,” said Ms Odinga.
She praised her brother Dr Oginga for having listened to her and made an about-turn on the two-term issue, saying the party was yet to decide on whether to support President Ruto’s re-election.
ODM party leader Dr Oburu Oginga speaks to journalists at Nyanza Golf Club, Kisumu, on May 8, 2026.
According to political observers, it was the chest-thumping by the Dr Oginga-led team and the fact they ignored crucial red flags that led to the downfall of the outfit.
Ms Odinga added that the fact that the party’s top leadership was the chest-thumping trying to shove decisions down the throats of ODM members also affected the growth of the Linda Ground team.
Then there is the transactional nature that is now being witnessed in the party.
“ODM has not always been about money and being paid to attend meetings; people believed in the legacy, ideology of Raila and the party and that is what drove them to the party,” said Ms Odinga.
Then there is the question over the source of funding by senior party hierarchy for the activities to be State House, watering down their credibility and casting doubt on the motive of the president and the endgame of their initiative.
The baggage they had to bear and still do is fighting the accusation that they had sold the party.
But some feel that this fall was well planned by President Ruto, who is said to have wanted ODM to be a regional party.
This alarm was raised by Governor Orengo a long time ago, even before Odinga died.
For Odhiambo Otieno, a political commentator, the death of Linda Ground is indicative that the “centre can no longer hold.”
ODM Secretary General Edwin Sifuna address a Linda Mwananchi politcal rally at Mazembe Grounds in Nakuru City on April 19, 2026.
“ODM Linda ground lost legitimacy, so they cannot protect what they lost way back. That which they are seeking to protect had already shifted or slipped in terms of legitimacy to the Sifuna-Orengo team,” said Mr Otieno.
He pointed out that as much as the ODM supporters would want to support structures of ODM, there is a way they would want the bravery that existed when Odinga was alive to be maintained. However, this can no longer happen.
“The bravery of correcting the government when you are in it is not within the team led by Oburu and Wanga, unfortunately. They are equally very good leaders, but politically, they are not as savvy as Raila, Sifuna or Orengo who can criticise the president in his presence,” said Mr Otieno.
There have been attempts to lure back the Linda Mwananchi team back to the fold, but the attempts have hit a snag.
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