Maragua Constituency MP Mary Wamaua has officially announced her intention to challenge Governor Irung’u Kang’ata in the 2027 Murang’a gubernatorial race, telling a charged crowd in Maragua town on Wednesday, “Si hata nyinyi mnaona niko na matako nzuri ya kukalia kiti ya governor. Sasa nataka nitoke MP nisimame governor.”
The light-hearted yet pointed remark, delivered in her trademark jovial style, instantly went viral across Mount Kenya WhatsApp groups and TikTok within hours, cementing her entry into what promises to be one of the hottest contests in the 2027 cycle.
Speaking at the launch of a women’s sacco in Kandara sub-county, the second-term legislator said she has consulted widely within UDA grassroots structures and received overwhelming blessings to ascend to the county’s top seat.
“I have served Maragua faithfully for ten years. I know every village, every market, every water problem. It is now time to take that experience countywide,” she told hundreds of cheering supporters who waved yellow UDA flags and branded lesos bearing her portrait.
Wamaua becomes the first major figure to openly declare interest in the Murang’a governor seat, setting the stage for a bruising United Democratic Alliance primary against the incumbent Kang’ata.
The soft-spoken but fiercely ambitious MP has built a solid reputation as a development champion since 2017. Her constituency has consistently topped NG-CDF utilisation rates in Murang’a, with visible projects ranging from the modern Maragua Level 4 Hospital, over 60 new ECDE classrooms, and a bursary kitty that disbursed KSh 94 million last financial year alone.
Political analysts say her track record gives her a head start over potential rivals, especially among women and youth voters who already nickname her “Mama County”.
Governor Irungu Kang’ata, elected in 2022 on a digital manifesto and aggressive revenue collection drive, has not yet declared whether he will seek re-election.
Sources within his camp, however, indicate he is quietly preparing for a second term, banking on achievements such as the county’s leap from KSh 800 million to over KSh 2.1 billion in own-source revenue and the ongoing tarmacking of 600 kilometres of roads.
Kang’ata’s allies dismissed Wamaua’s early move as “premature excitement”, with one MCA from Kigumo telling journalists off-record, “Let her enjoy the applause today. Campaigns start in 2026.”
The announcement has already triggered realignments across Murang’a’s seven constituencies. In Kangema and Mathioya, youth leaders who felt sidelined by Kang’ata’s administration immediately pledged loyalty to Wamaua, citing her accessibility and quick response to constituency issues.
Women’s groups under the banner of Murang’a Maendeleo ya Wanawake promised to mobilise one million votes for “our daughter” by 2027. Even some sitting MCAs opposed to the governor were spotted in the crowd wearing branded caps reading “Mary Governor 2027”.
As the sun set over Maragua stadium, Wamaua wrapped up her speech with a promise that resonated across the county: “I am not coming to learn on the job. I am coming to finish what I started as MP, but this time for all 1.2 million Murang’a residents.” Whether her bold humour and development scorecard will be enough to unseat an incumbent remains the question on everyone’s lips as the long road to 2027 begins.
