KANU Launches Bid to Rebuild Nakuru Support Base Ahead of 2027 General Election: “Watch out”

• KANU is back and on a mission to rebuild its support base within Nakuru county and beyond ahead of the 2027 General Election
• Part of the party’s new initiative targeting the home county of its former leader is being spearheaded by the KANU Women's Congress
• The Congress leadership was on Tuesday, August 19, in Rongai, where it sent a warning to those who had already written them off

The Kenya African National Union (KANU) has rolled out an ambitious initiative aimed at rebuilding its support base within Nakuru county ahead of the 2027 General Election.

Spearheaded by KANU Women's Congress, the new initiative is targeting women and the youth.

On Tuesday, August 19, the party officials kicked off an engagement of women and youths in Rongai, as the initiative officially began.

Why are KANU members in Nakuru?

Speaking at the event, KANU Women's Congress national chairperson Ann Karuga said the new drive will seek to connect the party with the locals, listen to the community and their priorities and strengthen women's participation.

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“Our party should not be written off easily. We are coming out strongly and rebuilding our systems to ensure that we participate in the coming elections as serious competitors,” Karuga said.

The KANU women leaders also maintained that the party is firm and that they are gearing up in readiness for the next general elections with bated breath.

“Watch out for KANU. We are back, stronger, and you will see us at the grassroots level. We want to reincarnate the old model of the powerful KANU system of leadership that had a direct link to the local people,” she said.

Some of the women leaders allied to the party had expressed concerns that it was losing touch with their expectations at the grassroots.

They pointed out KANU’s dismal performance in the 2022 General Election as an indication that all was not well with the party that once ruled the country for over 24 years.

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"We thought we had been forgotten by the party, especially now that we have not seen much of their activities and communication from the party leadership after the 2022 elections, but we are now encouraged that there is new energy and we may be on the ballot in 2027," said Martha Wamboi, one of the grassroots leaders."

Similar sentiments were shared by Mary Kimani, a resident of Kiamunyi and a diehard supporter of the KANU party.

She affirmed her support for the party and expressed optimism that it would return to competitive politics in 2027.

Is Nakuru KANU's stronghold?

Nakuru remains one of the critical areas for the KANU party, especially as it’s the home of the second president, the late Daniel Toroitich arap Moi, whose investment is situated in Kabarak, Rongai sub-county.

During the 2022 General Elections, the KANU party failed to secure even a single seat in Nakuru county after they were swept by the UDA wave.

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KANU’s last elected leader in Nakuru county, former Rongai MP, and scion of Moi, was trounced in a hotly contested election in 2022 by the current MP Paul Chebor alias Mamba.

Chebor garnered 27,021 votes against Moi, who got 14,715 after the elections were postponed due to the mix-up of the ballot papers.

Is Kakamega Jirongo's stronghold?

Previously, TUKO.co.ke reported that the United Democratic Party (UDP) had launched a plan to turn Kakamega into its stronghold.

The party headed by former Lugari MP Cyrus Jirongo said it was targeting to recruit at least 8,000 members from each of the wards in Kakamega county.

It expressed optimism that the new plan will enhance its support base beyond the county.

Proofreading by Asher Omondi, copy editor at TUKO.co.ke.

Source: TUKO.co.ke