Ruto reveals a plan to back Raila in the 2027 race as a shocking posthumous endorsement emerges from the State House, painting a picture of what-could-have-been in Kenya’s turbulent political saga.
Just days after Raila Odinga’s untimely death rocked the nation, President William Ruto dropped a bombshell in an intimate fireside chat with close aides, admitting he had been quietly grooming the veteran agitator for a triumphant return to the ballot box.
“I was planning to support Raila in 2027 for president – full throttle, no holds barred,” Ruto confided, his words leaked via a trusted advisor to The Standard, sending ripples of “what if” through opposition strongholds and UDA heartlands alike.
The revelation surfaced amid Mashujaa Day’s reflective glow, where Ruto had already bestowed the CGH on Odinga, but this? It’s the emotional encore, a confession laced with regret and raw strategy.
Sources say the pivot brewed in late-night strategy sessions post-2022 polls, when Ruto’s narrow win left him eyeing broader coalitions to tame economic headwinds.
“Raila brought the fire; I had the fuel. Together, we’d rewrite the script,” the leak quotes Ruto, evoking memories of their 2018 handshake that thawed a frozen feud.
Odinga, ever the phoenix from political ashes, had hinted at one last run during a Kisumu rally in March, vowing to “finish the building” Uhuru Kenyatta started.
Ruto’s nod? It would’ve been seismic, potentially sidelining Deputy Gachagua and fusing hustler ethos with Azimio’s social justice roar. Whispers of this alliance first bubbled in diplomatic circles, with envoys from Addis Ababa noting Ruto’s overtures during AU summits.
“It was pragmatic poetry – Raila’s Luo base plus Ruto’s Rift Valley machine could’ve steamrolled the coast,” one anonymous MP spilt to Nation Media. But fate’s cruel twist – Odinga’s sudden exit from heart complications on October 14 – slammed the door.
Gen Z activists, who once stormed streets against Ruto’s taxes, are split – some hail it as maturity, others cry crocodile tears. This isn’t mere nostalgia; it’s a masterclass in Kenyan realpolitik.
Ruto, 58 and eyeing legacy, knows Odinga’s shadow looms large: the man who birthed multipartyism from jail cells and midwifed the 2010 constitution.
“Supporting Raila would’ve been my bridge to history,” Ruto reportedly mused, per the leak, tying it to stalled BBI dreams and youth unemployment fixes.
As Kenya’s 2027 horizon sharpens – with IEBC reforms on the table and Kalonzo Musyoka circling – Ruto’s reveal reframes the grief. It’s a reminder that politics here dances on knife-edges, where enemies morph into allies overnight.
For Ruto, it’s a gambit to soften his “betrayer” tag from 2022. Will it rally the divided house? Or fuel fresh feuds? One thing’s sure: in the City in the Sun, even death can’t dim the drama. As Ruto pivots to his “bottom-up” sequel, Raila’s ghost might just co-author the next chapter. What’s your take on this phantom pact?