The Former Prime Minister Raila Odinga has in the August 9th presidential race, lost his fifth stab at the presidency after the IEBC chair Wafula Chebukati announced outgoing deputy President William Ruto as the presidential winner.
Raila who lost in the 1997, 2007, 2013 and 2017 elections was in 2022 defeated by Ruto after the latter got 7.1 million votes, against his 6.9 million votes, although he has dismissed the results, and said that the will be challenging Ruto's win at the Supreme Court.
Raila while going to the elections, was the most preferred candidate by President Uhuru Kenyatta, who traversed different counties during the last week of campaigns urging Kenyans to rally behind the ODM party leader.
According to Political Expert Peter Kagwanja, several issues might have contributed to Raila's lose, and include;
1.His camp's decision to rely in the 'deep state' and the 'system' which was months before the elections recognized by Raila's elder brother Oburu Odinga. Raila and his brigade, according to Kagwanja relied on the government to man their campaigns, and have their votes not rigged, something he says the team over-relied on the system.
2.Azimio's structure ranging from the campaigns, the manifesto and the election oversight was weak, and underfunded.
3.The decision by Jubilee leaders and candidates from Mount Kenya not to proudly put Raila's pictures in their campaign posers, and billboards or have grassroot campaigns in Raila's favour.
4.Raila failed to concentrate in this previously perceived strongholds such as Coast, Nairobi and Western region, which gave Ruto a way through and established his bottom-up model that resonated with the residents.
5.Azimio's failure to have a wining strategy by bringing on board the best minds in the block.
6.Failure to deploy and train agents across the all the polling station, and no effort were made in wooing the Azimio supporters to turn out and vote.
7.Leaving everything to chance in his strongholds, Raila contrary to the past election, Kagwanja said in 2022, Raila did not boldly urge the supporters to come out in large numbers to support him, since they believed the government at hand will favour him.
8.Being supported by the president, this made most Kenyans perceive him as a government project
Content created and supplied by: Gabrielokwenah (via Opera News )
COMMENTS