How William Ruto's campaign was similar to Roosevelt's

Newly sworn-in President William Ruto receives the Presidential Ceremonial Sword from outgoing president Uhuru Kenyatta at the inauguration ceremony at Kasarani Stadium. [Denish Ochieng, Standard]

Sometimes in January 1930s, US President Herbert Hoover found himself in an unfamiliar position: He was about to lose his job. He found himself in the middle of desperate times - the Great Depression. The New York Stock Exchange bubble had burst violently on October 24, 1929, a day that came to be known as Black Thursday when the stock market suddenly fell 90 per cent from its 1929 peak. This crash wiped out nominal wealth, sending the US economy into a tailspin. Ripples from the crash spread across the Atlantic Ocean to Europe, triggering wider financial crises. In 1931, the economic calamity hit all continents in full force.

Between 2019 and 2022, this similar combined political, economic and ecological atmosphere took place in Kenya amidst political campaigns. Ultimately, it seems destined that the winner had to be the person who directly addressed the pressing concerns and consequences of these conditions. William Ruto did it as Roosevelt did for Americans in 1930s. The two men's deeds and actions had a lot of similarities.

Franklin D Roosevelt (FDR) was able to successfully lead America through some of the tensest and unstable circumstances encountered in years. Roosevelt campaigned on the failures of the Herbert Hoover administration. He promised recovery with a "New Deal" for the American people. In the middle of these problems, Hoover, like Uhuru, seemed, we may say, heartless because of his ineffective policies as Great Depression deepened during his presidency. Unemployment increased from 1.6 million to 14 million. Wages in many industries fell far below the poverty level. Crops rotted in the ground while people starved.

Hoover's election campaign and speeches increased his unpopularity. People did not believe his promise that, "Prosperity is just around the corner." He offered no new policies. One protester's banner summed up public opinion, "In Hoover we trusted and now we are busted". He certainly had none of the warmth and charm of his presidential opponent, Roosevelt. Roosevelt, thus, took advantage of the American crises and promised a New Deal, which was a series of promises based on programmes supporting farmers, the unemployed, youth and the elderly during the crisis.

Like Roosevelt, Ruto took advantage of the Covid-19 crisis and economic despondency as political capital to launch a campaign credo that has gone well with depressive conditions most common Kenyans find themselves in. Like Roosevelt, Ruto seems to offer a deal and promising hope that will emancipate the hustlers from future effects of these pangs. These crises became a springboard for Ruto's political success. Roosevelt campaigned for American presidency against the backdrop of Great Depression with the promise to uplift "the forgotten man at the bottom of the pyramid". Similarly, Ruto has been able to whip up Kenyans' emotions highly enough to make them do a protest vote against the status quo.

Dr Chacha teaches at Laikipia University