Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has presented himself as the top opposition candidate for Kenya’s 2027 presidential election, expressing confidence that he can unseat President William Ruto after just one term.
Speaking in Boston, US, on July 21, 2025, during a diaspora engagement, Gachagua said he has both the political capital and national support to make William Ruto a one-term president.
“I am the frontrunner, and I think I have the best chance to be president,” Gachagua told the crowd.
The former deputy president, who parted ways with Ruto last year, insisted that no consensus has been reached within the opposition on a joint candidate, despite speculation about power-sharing deals and backroom negotiations.
“We have not settled on anybody. There’s only one thing that has been agreed on—and it’s Wantam (making Ruto a one-term president),” he said.
According to Gachagua, each aspirant within the opposition is currently building their own political base, and a major meeting will be held in December 2026 to determine who stands the best chance.
“After Christmas next year, we will meet and decide who carries the flag, one candidate to face William Ruto,” he said.
Gachagua’s confidence partly comes from his claimed influence in the Mount Kenya region, a voting bloc that has long played a key role in Kenyan politics.
“I mobilised 4 million people from this mountain to make you president. I will mobilise 8 million from this community to send you home,” he declared, drawing cheers from the audience.
Among other notable opposition leaders eyeing the presidential ticket are Wiper Party’s Kalonzo Musyoka, NARC Kenya leader Martha Karua, former Interior Cabinet Secretary Dr Fred Matiang’i, and Busia Senator Okiya Omtatah.
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