Tough test for Alfred Mutua as Wavinya Ndeti clinches Wiper ticket

Machakos County Wiper Party governor nominee Wavinya Ndeti receives her certificate from the party National Elections Board chair Agatha Solitei at Township Muslim Primary School in Machakos on May 6,2017 after being declared winner. PHOTO | STEPHEN MUTHINI | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • Ms Ndeti led in all the eight constituencies with a wide margin while Mr Kiala only managed above 1000 votes in Machakos Town constituency only.
  • Ms Ndeti and her running mate Peter Mathuki, Mavoko MP Patrick Makau and Machakos Town constituency Wiper nominee Urbanus Mutisya urged Mr Kiala to work with the winning team.

Former Kathiani MP Wavinya Ndeti has won the Machakos County Wiper Party gubernatorial elections again.

Ms Ndeti beat Deputy Governor Bernard Kiala with a landslide garnering 227,947 votes against Mr Kiala's 4,508 after a rerun that was ordered by the Political Parties Disputes Tribunal.

Mr Kiala had challenged the results of an earlier election where Ms Ndeti had won by 299,312 votes against his 4,663 votes.

The results of the Saturday ‘re-match’ were announced by the Wiper Party County Returning Officer Mr Jacob Mutula a few minutes past midnight.

Ms Ndeti was also handed a nomination certificate by party officials led by the elections board Chairperson Prof Agatha Solitei shortly after the announcement at Township Muslim Primary School in Machakos.

HEAVY DOWNPOUR

Residents braved heavy rains that pounded many parts of Machakos County on Saturday morning to cast their votes.

Ms Ndeti led in all the eight constituencies with a wide margin while Mr Kiala only managed above 1000 votes in Machakos Town constituency only.

Announcing the results, Mr Mutula said the elections were the most hurriedly-convened but successfully conducted.

Mr Mutula said there had been no need of a repeat as the results had confirmed the earlier verdict given by the people through the ballot.

He said the party will challenge the ruling of the Tribunal that ordered a rerun notwithstanding the results of Saturday’s exercise.

"We are going to challenge the Tribunal on serious matters of Law, the outcome of this election notwithstanding," said Mr Mutula adding that the Tribunal had no capacity to interpret an agreement between two political parties as those were internal affairs.

DIRECT TICKET

Ms Ndeti and her running mate Peter Mathuki, Mavoko MP Patrick Makau and Machakos Town constituency Wiper nominee Urbanus Mutisya urged Mr Kiala to work with the winning team.

Ms Ndeti said those who thought she had been favoured by the party by being given a direct nomination had now been proven wrong by the election results.

She promised a bigger win against the incumbent governor Alfred Mutua in the August elections.

"Our people are poorer than before. I will make sure nobody will disrespect the people of Machakos again," Ms Ndeti promised in her acceptance speech.

DITCH PART

On Sunday afternoon, Mr Kiala announced that he had quit theparty saying he will pursue his political interests "outside Wiper."

Mr Kiala did not respond to our query on whether he had conceded defeat but some of his supporters cried foul saying the elections had a 'pre-determined' outcome.