The political re-emergence of former president Uhuru Kenyatta last Friday, when he chaired the National Delegates Conference (NDC) of the Jubilee Party in Nairobi, has injected fresh energy into Kenyas political theatre while reopening old wounds in Mount Kenya politics.
Kenyatta, who had retreated into a quiet profile after leaving State House in 2022, used the NDC to assert authority over a party long dismissed as a spent force. His return was both symbolic and strategic: it revived Jubilees claim to relevance, while complicating the already fragile attempts by impeached Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua to recast himself as the undisputed Mt Kenya political kingpin despite his impeachment and loss of elective eligibility.
For Kenyattas loyalists, the sight of their former leader chairing the delegates meeting was a moment of vindication. Jubilee is alive and well. We will not allow anyone to destroy what we built, he told cheering delegates, in a message that resonated across networks of party faithful, church leaders and retired business elites in central Kenya.
For Gachagua, however, the optics were damaging. His political identity has long rested on presenting himself as the authentic spokesperson of the mountain. Even in political exile, he has projected the idea that he remains indispensable to the regions unity. Kenyattas return undercuts this narrative, reminding voters that there is an older, still credible figure whose name carries historic weight.
At the heart of this is the enduring significance of the Mt Kenya bloc. For decades, the regions numerical strength has been decisive in national contests. President William Rutos sweep of the vote there in 2022 was instrumental in his victory.
Today, his Deputy Kithure Kindiki provides him with a secure anchor, projecting calm authority and broad acceptability. Kindiki, once overlooked in favour of Gachagua, has settled into the deputy presidency with technocratic polish, appealing to professionals, moderates and the business class. He is not the one directly threatened by Kenyattas moves. Instead, it is Gachaguas claim to kingpinship even from outside office that appears increasingly untenable as Jubilee regains visibility.
The broader implications extend into the 2027 election. Kenyan politics have lately thrived on coalition-making, and even a weakened Jubilee can be a useful bargaining chip. For disillusioned voters, the party provides a vehicle of protest. It also gives opposition forces a chance to rope Kenyatta into any emerging alliances.
Looking ahead, three scenarios frame the road to 2027. In the first, Ruto and Kindiki enter the contest facing a fragmented opposition, with Jubilee acting more as a spoiler than a dominant force. This would allow the government to consolidate the Mt Kenya base while neutralising Gachaguas influence.
In the second, Kenyatta succeeds in re-energising Jubilee and aligning with opposition actors, creating a more formidable challenge to Rutos re-election and unsettling Mt Kenya unity.
In the third, a new political force possibly a generational one emerges from younger leaders dissatisfied with both UDA and Jubilee, reshaping the political conversation altogether.
What is certain is that Kenyattas return shifts the focus of central Kenya politics away from Gachaguas attempted comeback and towards a more complex contest of loyalties. The region is unlikely to be a monolith, and in that fragmentation lies both opportunity and risk for all major actors.
Against a backdrop of the current political undercurrents, the re-entry of a former president into the arena is more than symbolic theatre. It is a reminder that in Kenyan politics, no kingpin holds the mountain forever, and every coalition is only as secure as its last handshake
