Jubilee party endorses Fred Matiang'i for 2027 presidency

Former President Uhuru Kenyatta and ex-Minister Fred Matiang'i at a past event. [File, Standard] Jubilee party has announced a plan to support former Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang'i's presidential bid in the 2027 General Election. While addressing journalists in Nyandarua County, Party Secretary General Jeremiah Kioni said the party had gained a tremendous membership putting it in a better place to support Matiang'i's presidency. He said the party's membership has hit seven million, giving it an edge over other political parties ahead of the 2027 political contest. According to him, the figure is contained in a list from the Office of Registrar of Political Parties (ORPP) which the Party got after being denied access to the register for about two years. "For the first time in about two years, we can access the list of our party membership and I am happy to state that Jubilee's membership stands at 7,110,525 members," he said. Kioni said the party would throw its weight behind Matiang'i because he served in former President Uhuru Kenyatta's regime. READ: Why Matiang'i will lose badly if he contests against Ruto in 2027 "We will continue registering members and revitalising the party to give a good grounding to Dr Matiang'i," he said. Kioni revealed that the name of the former CS was floated in Narok by residents during a party activity. Murang'a and Kiambu followed suit in endorsing the name. The SG said he was hopeful that all the people who have shown their desire to vie for the presidency in 2027 will correlate around one of the candidates to face President William Ruto of Kenya Kwanza. He said Matiang'i could turn around the country in the shortest time possible. "We want a person who can put the country back on track within the shortest time possible," Kioni said adding, "After having served in the cabinet for 10 years, Dr Matiang'i has the requisite experience to kick start stalled projects and revive programs like Edu-Afya, vision 2030 and also ensure stalled dams are done." Since 2020, a number of leaders from Gusii region have been advocating for a Matiang'i presidency. Many had wanted the former CS to succeed Uhuru in 2022. In his bid to capture the presidency in the next election, Matiang'i has already hired the services of Montreal-based Canadian lobbying firm Dickens & Madson to help him strategise for his 2027 presidential campaigns after making a down payment of $65,000 (Sh8.4 million) of the $250,000 (Sh32.5 million) which was required to jumpstart the process of lobbying for international support. According to documents filed by Dickens & Madson with the United States of America Department of Justice under the Foreign Agents Registration Act, Matiang'i hired the company on July 13, 2024, to help him seek international support as he prepares to gun for the presidency. With Jubilee Party's endorsement, it is worth noting that if he eventually runs, the former university lecturer will be seeking an elective seat for the first time in his public service career. Jubilee is a major political party that significantly influenced the country's political landscape since it was founded on September 8, 2016. ALSO READ: Will Matiangi Succeed in his 2027 Presidential bid In the run-up to the 2017 General Election, the party merged with 11 other smaller parties including The National Alliance (TNA) led by Uhuru Kenyatta and the United Republican Party (URP) of William Ruto to secure a strong plurality parliament. Its dominance saw Uhuru and Ruto win the re-election as president and deputy respectively. However, internal wrangles surfaced soon after the 2017 elections with Uhuru accusing his deputy of "Kutangatanga" (loitering around), accusing him of prioritizing political campaigns over his responsibilities. The tensions escalated over time, culminating in Ruto's departure from Jubilee in 2022 to join the United Democratic Alliance (UDA). Uhuru openly endorsed opposition leader Raila Odinga as his preferred successor in the run-up to the 2022 elections forming the Azimio la Umoja coalition. The alliance failed to secure victory. The alliance has since remained deeply divided after the loss, with the factious split between supporting the government of the day and remaining in the opposition.

Jubilee party endorses Fred Matiang'i for 2027 presidency

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