2022 polls: ODM bags all Kisumu County top seats
Kisumu Governor Anyang' Nyong'o (second left), Woman Rep-elect Ruth Odinga, Senator-elect Tom Ojienda and Deputy Governor Mathews Owili (left).
It was an all-Orange Democratic Movement Party (ODM) affair in Kisumu, with the three top county seats clinched by the party’s candidates in Tuesday’s polls.
Kisumu Governor Anyang Nyong'o brushed off opponents to earn himself a second term.
Governor Nyong'o (ODM) polled 319,957 votes against his closest rival, Kisumu ex-governor Jack Ranguma of the Movement for Democracy and Growth (MDG), who had 100,600.
In the results announced by county returning officer Solomon Mudanya, Mrs Awuor Beryl Meso, the only independent candidate in the race, received 3,383 votes, while Mr Erick Osenya of the United Democratic Alliance Party (UDA) garnered 2,705.
Pending projects
In his acceptance speech, Governor Nyong’o thanked voters for giving him a second chance, promising to deliver on his promises.
“We laid down the foundation in the last five years and now it is time to complete what we started by finishing pending projects,” he said.
He also lauded President Uhuru Kenyatta and Azimio presidential candidate Raila Odinga for the national government projects initiated in the county, such as the Kisumu port, improved roads, revamped railway lines and the coming special economic zone in Miwani.
Mr Odinga’s younger sister, Ruth Odinga, was also elected the third Kisumu woman representative with 304,493 votes, beating Valentine Otieno (MDG), who had 80,117.
Dr Rose Kisia (independent) had 36,692 votes and Philgona Ayugi (UDA) 7,825.
Elective seat
Ms Odinga once served as Kisumu deputy governor under Mr Ranguma. She was the director of special programmes under Governor Nyong’o before resigning to seek an elective seat.
She had ambitions to face Prof Nyong’o but shifted her eyes to the woman representative seat. She received her ticket after defeating prominent women politicians in ODM primaries.
Prominent lawyer Prof Tom Ojienda won the Senate seat with 413,121 votes against Jubilee’s Prof Enos Okolo, who garnered 15,575 votes.
Prof Ojienda has over two decades of experience in the corridors of justice and has handled high-profile cases.
