The move by the ODM leader Raila Odinga to name Martha Karua as his presidential running mate has seen him overtake Deputy President William Ruto in popularity rating ahead of the August General Election.
According to the latest opinion polls by Tifa research, the Azimio la Umoja-One Kenya presidential candidate will trounce DP Ruto if elections were held today.
The survey released on Wednesday, May 18, indicates that Raila is the most preferred presidential candidate with 39 percent of respondents saying they would vote for him against 35 percent who prefer Deputy President William Ruto.
“As of now the presidential contest pair of Raila and Karua appear to attract the most voting intentions of Kenyans, though the Ruto-Gacagua pair are not far behind at (39 % vs 35%),” the research findings stated.
According to the poll which covered 1,719 respondents, Raila Odinga’s popularity in the Mt Kenya region increased currently standing at 24 %, while that of DP Ruto has reduced to 46%.
The research was conducted between May 15 and May 16, 2022, after both Ruto and Raila had named their presidential running mates.
The Wiper leader Kalonzo Musyoka who recently revived his presidential ambitions came a distant third with just two percent of the respondents saying they would vote for him.
Azimio la Umoja-One Kenya is popular in five of the nine voting regions namely; Nyanza (69%), Coast (49%), Lower Eastern (36%), Nairobi (49%), and Western (49%).
On the other hand, the Kenya Kwanza alliance led by DP Ruto is most popular in four of the nine zones; South Rift (66%), Central (59%), Mt Kenya (46%), and Northern (40%).
The poll which has a margin error of +/- 2.34 still has 14 % of the respondents who are undecided on whoever they will vote for during the August polls.
