By WAKHUNGU ANDANJE
June 10,2026| Kakamega Woman Representative Elsie Muhanda has asked residents of the county to forgive her for supporting Governor Fernandez Barasa in the 2022 elections, saying she now believes she helped usher in the wrong leadership.
Muhanda, who has declared her intention to challenge Barasa for the governorship in 2027, said she and other leaders campaigned vigorously for him believing he would preserve and expand the development agenda initiated by former Governor Wycliffe Oparanya.
“I ask the people of Kakamega County to forgive me for supporting and campaigning for Governor Fernandez Barasa. We believed he would continue the good work started by Governor Oparanya, but that has not happened,” she said.
Political insiders say Oparanya was initially reluctant to endorse Barasa as his successor and was more inclined towards his deputy, Prof Philip Kutima.
However, sources claim Muhanda went the extra mile to lobby for Barasa and helped facilitate his entry into Oparanya’s inner circle through a female intermediary said to be close to the former governor’s family.
Muhanda and Barasa are also said to have previously worked together at the Kenya Electricity Transmission Company (Ketraco), where they developed close political ties before the 2022 succession politics.
Speaking during an interview on a national radio station, Muhanda said many residents have become disappointed with the current administration and have openly told the governor he risks becoming a one-term leader.
She argued that despite Kakamega’s annual allocation rising to about Sh18 billion, compared to approximately Sh12 billion during Oparanya’s tenure, residents have not witnessed commensurate development.
According to Muhanda, widespread dissatisfaction among voters informed her decision to enter the 2027 race.She appealed to women across the county to rally behind female leadership, noting that Western Kenya has produced only a handful of prominent women leaders since the era of Prof Julia Ojiambo and Christine Mango.
Muhanda further disclosed that she is unlikely to seek the ODM ticket if Barasa also contests under the party, citing what she described as lack of transparency and alleged manipulation of internal party processes.
She said she is prepared to seek the governorship through another political outfit or as an independent candidate.
The Woman Representative also raised concerns over alleged attacks against her supporters in various parts of the county, saying repeated reports to authorities had not yielded action.
Her remarks mark one of the strongest public attacks yet by a senior leader who once played a central role in Barasa’s rise to power, setting the stage for what is shaping up to be a fierce contest for Kakamega’s top seat in 2027.