Kenya African National Union (KANU) party boss Gideon Moi has dropped out of the Baringo Senatorial by-election race.

The former senator revealed that he had withdrawn his candidacy on Thursday, barely a week after initially announcing his intention to join the race.

KANU Secretary General George Wainaina confirmed that the party would not field a candidate, arguably giving the United Democratic Alliance (UDA) a free run at the polls.

Before the announcement, Gideon had failed to present his nomination papers to the Independent Boundaries and Electoral Commission (IEBC), prompting protests by his supporters in his Kabarnet stronghold on Thursday, October 9.

His supporters had turned up at the Baringo Airstrip as they waited for Gideon to present his papers. IEBC had allocated Gideon between 11:00am and 2:00pm to submit his papers, but the former Baringo Senator did not turn up by the close of the allocated window. 

State House Meeting

His decision to drop out followed reports of a secret meeting between Gideon and President William Ruto at State House, believed to have focused on the upcoming Baringo race.

Gideon's visit to State House followed an invitation from Ruto, and it is believed that the two leaders held candid discussions about the upcoming contest and other national issues. Gideon was accompanied by KANU SG Wainaina and former Baringo Woman Representative Gladwell Cheruiyot. 

Moi’s decision to contest had caused ripples within Ruto’s UDA, as a negative outcome in the Baringo by-election would have had a knock-on effect in Ruto’s influence in the greater Rift Valley region.

Previously, Gideon had pledged not to align himself with the current regime and was believed to have been using the Standard Group, a company affiliated with him, to heavily criticise the government.

Moi had lost the Baringo seat in the 2022 General Election to the late William Cheptumo, with Ruto’s UDA trouncing KANU across multiple other elective seats in the perceived KANU stronghold. In the upcoming November 27 by-elections, Ruto’s UDA will be represented by Vincent Chemitei. By Walter Ngano, Kenyans.co.ke