Saturday, April 20, 2024

Politicians shifting bases; is it strategic or political suicide?

Every election year in Kenya provides politicians with an opportunity to realign themselves with new outfits and formations in order to get elected into desired positions.

Some even make bolder decisions like shifting political bases from one elective seat to another.

While a few have been lucky with such moves, others have lived to regret.

As the clock ticks towards the August 9, general elections, a number of politicians have declared that they will be going for different seats from the ones they have been holding for the last five years.

Is it strategic or are they committing political suicide?

Many of the outgoing governors have announced intentions, perhaps to remain politically relevant, by going for different seats after serving the mandatory two terms at the helm of various counties.

,Many of them have set their eyes on the Senate setting up an interesting political scenario likely to play out after the elections.

Senators, are by law, the ones who oversight the counties.

Interestingly, a number of Senators are also expected to contest as governors. So such senators will be switching roles from oversight to actual implementation if elected.

Several Woman Representatives have also declared their intentions to shift seats from the National Government Affirmative Action Funds (NGAAF) funded seats to that of the Constituency Development Fund (CDF).

While it is not possible to define what may have influenced such moves, it is widely believed that the large difference in the size of the coffers may be at play.

A member of parliament controls much more financial resources compared to a Woman Representative.

In the past, Kenya has had such shifts in political bases influenced by changes in boundary reviews but for a long time, that has not happened making it largely a political calculations affair.

It remains to be seen if the changes will bear any fruits come August 9th.

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