The Nakuru gubernatorial race has proven to be a tough supremacy battle between Deputy President William Ruto and ODM leader Raila Odinga.
This has been witnessed as the incumbent Governor Lee Kinyanjui (a supporter of Raila Odinga) and Senator Susan Kihika (supporter of William Ruto) have declared interest in the Nakuru gubernatorial race in 2022.
On September 21, Governor Lee Kinyanjui hosted Raila Odinga in the county, promising to support his presidential ambition.
In the presence of Raila Odinga, Lee Kinyanjui declared that he has not been a fan of ODM, but will support him in the 2022 elections.
The Governor heaped praises on Raila Odinga, saying many projects in the county have been realized because of his actions at the national level.
“When we needed you, you were there, you kept the country going the bills in parliament were passing, the peace was there, I can only say a big thank you.
I have voted 5 or 6 times, and in those years, I have never voted for you. But in the coming year, I see that changing,” Nakuru Governor Lee Kinyanjui said.
Two weeks later, Nakuru Senator Susan Kihika played host to Deputy President William Ruto at her Ngata home.
In the October 2 rally, Susan Kihika fired at her opponent for treating her like an underdog.
“The governor has the advantage that he speaks but I have no chance to rebut. You (governor) will sow the seed of discord in the country and I give you notice that we will not entertain those behaviours of ODM in the country. Stop using your friends to attack me,” said Susan Kihika.
Nakuru county politically associates with the Mt Kenya region even though it geographically lies in Rift Valley.
This has seen Kinyanjui align the county development and political agenda with that of Mt Kenya.
On the other hand, Susan Kihika has been aligning herself in DP Ruto’s agenda for Mt Kenya region and partly Rift Valley.
