MPs back Kirinyaga’s Anne Waiguru for Deputy President in 2027, urge Mt Kenya to stick with Ruto

A group of Members of Parliament has endorsed Kirinyaga Governor Anne Waiguru for the Deputy President position in the 2027 General Election, arguing that her experience in national and county government prepares her for the role.

The legislators — Irene Njoki (Bahati), Anne Wamuratha (Kiambu) and Gachoki Gitari (Kirinyaga Central) — made the call during a women empowerment forum in Bahati Constituency, Nakuru County. They also urged the Mt Kenya region not to abandon President William Ruto’s re-election bid, warning that walking away from the government could cost the community its political influence.

The MPs said Waiguru’s record at the National Treasury, her time as Cabinet Secretary, and two terms as Kirinyaga governor had equipped her for greater national responsibility. They described her as a suitable running mate for President Ruto and called on Kenyans to base their 2027 choices on performance rather than political rhetoric.

“We ask you to support Waiguru for the DP position so that she can defend women issues on the high table,” said Bahati MP Irene Njoki.

Gitari praised Waiguru’s leadership in Kirinyaga and urged Bahati residents to back her bid. He pointed to her development record and called on women to support one another for senior national positions. “Her transformation initiatives such as Huduma Centers, IFMIS, and her time as Devolution and Planning Cabinet Secretary, two terms as governor and Chair and Vice Chair at the Council of Governors speaks round for everyone to see,” the source material recorded after Gitari’s remarks.

Speaking at the same forum, Governor Waiguru argued that the 2027 election should centre on development, political representation and the region’s long-term interests rather than political emotion. She expressed confidence that President Ruto would secure a second term.

“I do not gamble. I have done my analysis, and I can guarantee you that President Ruto will be re-elected in 2027,” Waiguru told the gathering. She maintained that the Mt Kenya region should not isolate itself from a government in which it still has an opportunity to influence national decisions.

Waiguru assessed that the opposition’s prospects were complicated by competing presidential ambitions among its leaders, who she said were unlikely to agree on a common candidate. In her view, a fragmented opposition would divide its support and improve Ruto’s chances. She further claimed that only a handful of Mt Kenya counties remained opposed to the government and that political sentiment in some of those areas was beginning to shift.

She cautioned residents against leaders she accused of seeking to use the region’s voting strength as leverage in post-election negotiations. “Even when a house is leaking, you repair it; you do not demolish the whole house,” she said, arguing that dissatisfaction should not automatically lead to abandoning the administration.

The governor invoked the importance of keeping political commitments, saying the Mt Kenya community should honour its understanding with Ruto. She cited infrastructure projects, including the Rironi–Mau Summit highway, as examples of investments that could benefit the wider region and strengthen the case for continuity. Waiguru maintained that removing a sitting president is difficult where an administration can point to development projects and an established national support base.

Beyond the re-election campaign, Waiguru used the forum to advance her own case for national leadership. “I have finished my work as governor, and I want to move to national matters,” she said, explaining that her engagement with communities across the country was intended to explain her ambitions and seek public support.

She argued that women deserve a stronger presence at the highest levels of executive decision-making, noting that their representation could bring greater attention to issues affecting households and communities. She pointed to health, water and youth empowerment as areas where women’s experiences could shape more responsive policy, observing that women constitute approximately half the population.

MP Njoki, who hosted the event, defended her support for the Kenya Kwanza administration, saying it was informed by the government’s performance and its contribution to development in her constituency. She urged residents to evaluate the government on what it had delivered. Waiguru, in turn, praised Njoki’s development record and challenged constituents to assess whether results were visible, saying development required cooperation between elected leaders and the national government.

The endorsements come as political positioning for the 2027 elections intensifies in the Mt Kenya region, a key voting bloc. The statements reflect both support for continued engagement with the current administration and an early push for greater women’s representation in the executive.

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