Johnson Sakaja joins ODM to contest Nairobi governorship in 2027
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Kenyans.co.ke
Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja has left the United Democratic Alliance to join the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM), whose banner he will carry in the 2027 gubernatorial election. Party officials welcomed him on 2 November in Nairobi, after several weeks of political rapprochement, according to Kenyans.co.ke.
Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja has left the United Democratic Alliance (UDA), Kenya’s ruling party, to join the opposition Orange Democratic Movement (ODM), with a view to seeking a second term in 2027. He was welcomed in Nairobi on Monday 2 November by ODM officials, including its deputy leader, Simba Arati, according to Kenyans.co.ke.
Sakaja said he would now use the ODM ticket to defend his position as governor. On 31 October, he attended a party rally at Jacaranda Grounds, where he asked his supporters to choose which party he should run under. The ODM had been courting him for several months and believes he has a better chance of being re-elected under its banner.
Suna East MP Junet Mohammed had publicly invited Sakaja to join the ODM, saying he would not be re-elected if he stayed with the UDA. In 2025, former ODM leader Raila Odinga had already backed Sakaja’s re-election in 2027.
The move comes after clashes at an ODM rally in Nairobi on 31 October. It also follows consultations Sakaja announced in August 2026 about his political future, while he was still a member of the ruling party.
