Jubilee female politicians bag more top seats

Jubilee Party has the highest number of women who have been elected to top key political seats in Tuesday’s General Election.

Of the three women who have made history as the first elected governors, two seats went to Jubilee in outgoing deputy national Assembly Speaker  Joyce Laboso who won the Bomet governorship and her Kirinyaga counterpart Anne Waiguru.

Former cabinet minister Charity Ngilu won the Kitui governorship on her Narc party under the National Super Alliance (Nasa ) coalition.

HUGE DEFEAT

Dr Laboso,  also the Sotik MP, garnered 175, 932 votes which translates to a 67 per cent to handed incumbent Isaac Ruto, who was defending his seat on a Chama Cha Mashinani, a huge defeat.

Mr Ruto, a Nasa, principal managed to garner 85, 863 votes.

Ms Waiguru, the former Devolution Cabinet Secretary, staged a spirited campaign to trounce incumbent Joseph Ndathi during the Jubilee Party primaries in Kirinyaga, and in the August 8 election,  defeated former Gichugu MP and cabinet minister Martha Karua after after garnering 159, 606  against 120, 341 in a tough battle.

But it is Ms Ngilu, a veteran politician and former cabinet minister in the Kibaki and Uhuru Kenyatta governments, who once vied for presidency, who pulled a surprise after she surmounted Wiper Democratic Movement’s popularity in the Ukambani region, and the vigour by her two male opponents to become the third female governor. She won by 167, 741 votes to beat Kitui Senator David Musila who was running as an independent candidate and incumbent Julius Malobe of Wiper.

SENATORIAL RACES

Mr Musila who returned to the race as an independent candidate after losing the Wiper ticket to the Mr Malombe under controversial circumstances got 113, 012 votes  to emerge second while the governor was third with 74, 006 votes.

In the senatorial seats,  Jubilee Party won two through the former Nakuru Assembly Speaker Susan Kihika in the County, while former Cabinet minister in the Kibaki administration Prof Margaret Kamar won the Uasin Gishu seat with a landslide.

Ms Kihika,  a lawyer, won decisively with 656, 766 votes to replace James Mungai, who opted to run for the governor seat as an independent candidate but lost.

Prof Kamar, a former Eldoret East MP and Higher Education minister who unsuccessfully ran for Uasin Gishu governor in 2013, beat a field of male rivals who included incumbent Isaac Melly, bagging 225, 817 votes which translated to 67 per cent, to make a political comeback to national politics.

The third woman to join her two colleagues to also make history as the first elected female senators is Ms Fatuma Dullo who has captured the Isiolo County seat. The nominated senator was elected on Party of Reforms and Democracy, which is affiliated to Jubilee Party. 

She floored six male contestants to replace Senator Muhamed Kuti, who has won the Isiolo governor seat and garnered 14, 544 votes to beat among them Hussein Roba,  an independent candidate and Mohammed Libani of Jubilee, who got 11, 705 votes and 13, 675 votes respectively.

In addition to bagging 13 out of the 22 constituency seats won by incoming women MPs, Jubilee Party also has the majority of the 47 Woman Rep seats followed by the Orange Democratic party (ODM) which also took five seats for female MPs headed to the 12th Parliament.

The President Uhuru Kenyatta’s party won 25 seats,  Orange Democratic Party bagged 11  Kalonzo Musyoka’s Wiper  Party managed three seats while Musalia Mudavadi’s Amani Coalition, Moses Wetangula’s Ford Kenya, and Kanu won one seat each.

Jubilee won the Kiambu seat  with a landslide with radio host Gathoni Wamuchomba, garnering a whooping 915, 477 votes to replace Ms Anna Nyokabi, who she beat during the party primaries, while Murang’a Sabina Chege got 390, 912 to retain her seat.

Nominated Senator Liza Chelule will now sit in the National Assembly after winning the Nakuru seat while in Nyandarua, Faith Wairumu replaces Wanjiku Wa Muhia, and Wambui Ngirichi comes in as the second Kirinyaga woman representative.

Jubilee candidates also triumphed in Nyamira and Turkana, Lamu, Taita Taveta and Trans Nzoia counties where  Ms Jerusha Mongina, Ms Joyce Akai, Ms Ruwedia Mohamed, Ms Lydia Haika  Ms Janet Nangabo won the seats respectively.

The party also won in Laikipia where Catherine Wanjiku becomes the  second woman representative, Faith Mukami (Nyeri), Rehema Dida (Isiolo), Janet Marania Teiyaa (Kajiado), Soipan Tuya (Narok), Chebet Tum (Nandi), Sofia Sheikh (Marsabit), Gladys Boss Sholei (Uasin Gishu)  and in Tharaka Nithi where Beatrice Nkatha was re-elected.

Others are Jane Jepkemoi (Elgeyo Marakwet), Jane Wanjiku (Embu), Anab Mohamed (Garrisa), Joyce Korir (Bomet), Florence Koskey (Kericho) and Lilian Tomitom in West Pokot.  Ms Maison Leshoomo retained the Samburu seat on a Kanu ticket.

The Orange Democratic Party of Nasa leader Raila Odinga won the Homabay seat where Gladys Wanga easily retained the seat, and in Busia where Florence Mutua also retained her seat.

 The other seats captured by ODM are Nairobi where Esther Passaris beat incumbent Rachel Shebesh of Jubilee Party who was defending the seat on a JP ticket, Kakamega where Elisie Busihie won, Christine Ombaka (Siaya), Pamela Awour (Migori), Rozaah Akinyi (Kisumu), Asha Hussein (Mombasa), Getrude Mbeyu (Kilifi), Zuleika Juma (Kwale) and in Kisii where Janet Ongera won.

Wiper party won in Makueni where Rose Museo is the in coming woman representative, Joyce Kamene (Machakos) and in Kitui where Irene Muthoni Kasalu won after garnering 230, 106 votes.

Amani National Congress bagged the Vihiga seat where Beatrice Kahai won after getting 68, 529 votes while Ford Kenya won the Bungoma seat through Catherine Nanjala with 252, 344 votes.

Economic Freedom Party’s Amina Gedow won in Mandera while Development and Reforms’s Fatuma Ali triumphed in Wajir County. Ms Rehema Hassan of  Maendeleo Chap Chap clinched the Tana River seat.

Businesswoman Kawira Mwangaza put up a tough battle to dislodge an equally tough Florence Kajuju of Jubilee Party from the Meru seat, as an independent.  In Baringo, Ms Gladwell Cheruiyot  also campaigned her way to win the County seat on a Kanu ticket.