Former nominated Senator Isaac Mwaura has said that the vote-rich Mt Kenya region will always dictate who becomes the president.
According to the former lawmaker, the region has always voted as a bloc, something he says is a sure bet as it has seen the region produce three out of the four Heads of State.
“Mt Kenya region has always produced a very strong competition to anyone who is aspiring to become the president,” Mwaura said in an interview with KTN News on Wednesday, September 22.
With more than five presidential candidates warming up to succeed President Uhuru Kenyatta in the August 2022 General Election, Mwaura says that the region has no de facto presidential candidate but will play a vital role in who takes over the leadership mantle.
This, he says, is the reason every presidential hopeful is camping in Mt Kenya with the hope of having the region vote in their favour.
Mwaura said just like the former Nyanza province, the Mt Kenya region is the only place that can rally behind one presidential candidate.
“In fact, you will also realise that if you want a united bloc, there are only two places where you can get that. Either in Mt Kenya region or former Nyanza province,” Mwaura said.
The Mt Kenya region which has in the recent past boasted of close to 4.5 million votes as per the 2017 electoral register is projected to hit the 6 million mark in the hotly anticipated 2022 elections.
Mwaura however says the 2022 presidential elections will be different since the region will not be fielding a serious presidential candidate as well as the ongoing rift in the Mt Kenya region between the East (Meru, Embu, Mbeere) and the West (Kikuyu community).
“This time is quite unique because we don’t have a de facto candidate from the region who the region will automatically be rallying upon to support,” he said.