Uasin Gishu County is today considered a stronghold of Deputy President William Ruto who doubles up as the United Democratic Alliance (UDA) party leader.
The party enjoys almost unanimous support, and this explains why clinching the ticket in the upcoming nomination is seen as a do-or-die contest.
With UDA preparing for the nominations on April 14, 2022, there are a number of politicians in the county that have opted not to align themselves with any political side.
We take a look at some of the aspirants that have so far announced that they will be seeking election as independent candidates;
Bundotich Zedekia Kiprop (Buzeki)
The billionaire businessman is eyeing the Uasin Gishu gubernatorial seat.
This is the second time he will be going for the seat as an independent candidate after he was unsuccessful in his first attempt in 2017.
Buzeki has been urging voters in the county to go for an individual and not a party.
“Uasin Gishu is my County of birth. It deserves the best leader. Let’s make the 2022 election a product of capabilities and concrete developmental plans,” he notes in a recent post on his Facebook page.
Prof. Margaret Kamar
She is currently the Uasin Gishu Senator and Deputy Speaker in the Senate. Having decided to align with the Jubilee party when it targeted politicians allied to Deputy President William Ruto, Prof. Kamar had remained mum on whether she will be defending her seat or not, until recently when she said she will be in the race – not as a Jubilee candidate, but as an independent.
A few months ago, Prof. Kamar led several other politicians from the Rift valley region to meet ODM leader Raila Odinga.
“I have decided not to align myself to any of the political formations ahead of the August 9 polls by defending my Senate seat as an independent candidate,” Kamar said.
Silas Tiren
Tiren is serving his second term as Moiben Member of Parliament, and he is hoping to get a third term. He is among the leaders branded as rebels by UDA allies for refusing to join the hustler movement.
The MP said he had opted to go the independent way, for fear of being denied the UDA ticket had he sought the party ticket – based on previous experience in 2013 and 2017.
Dr. Swarup Mishra
This is another MP branded as a rebel, and because of the hostility that UDA politicians have shown against him, he had no option but to seek re-election as an independent candidate.
Mishra is serving his first term in Parliament and it remains to be seen whether he will be able to shake off the UDA wave in the county and retain the seat.
William Chepkut
Chepkut is eyeing re-election for the second term as Ainabkoi MP. He was elected in 2017 as an independent candidate and has opted to stick with it in the August 9 poll.
Previously, Chepkut was in the Jubilee party before he quit following a controversial nomination loss to former MP Samuel Chepkonga.
Kapseret Constituency also has two aspirants vying against MP Oscar Sudi on an independent ticket. Frank Murgor quit UDA to go the independent way due to what he said were foreseen challenges in party nominations.
Steve Kewa, who unsuccessfully vied for the Kapseret MP seat in 2017 is also in the race as an independent candidate.
[…] Aside from Buzeki and Chepkut, there are several other politicians in Uasin Gishu that will be vying as independent candidates. […]