Sibling rivalry isn’t new in Kenyan politics but in Bungoma, it has now evolved from family chatter to full-blown electoral theatre.
National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetangula and his younger brother, Westlands MP Tim Wanyonyi, are increasingly finding themselves on opposite sides of a rapidly changing county political map. What began as subtle political divergence now appears to be spiralling into a strategic power struggle with Bungoma’s 2027 governor race at its center.
Tension sharpened after the Chwele–Kabuchai ward by-election upset, where independent candidate Erick Wekesa wiped out Ford Kenya’s Vincent Maunda with a commanding margin of more than 4,000 votes. The loss rattled Wetangula’s traditionally tight grip on the county’s political machinery and gave his brother an opening.
During a charged stop in Bungoma on Monday, December 8, Wanyonyi didn’t mince words. Without naming names, he took aim at unnamed leaders accused of weaponizing power instead of earning trust remarks that political analysts and locals swiftly decoded as directed at the Speaker and his loyalists.
“In Kabuchai, people proved that leadership cannot be forced down their throats,” Wanyonyi said, drawing applause. “Intimidation failed. Arrogance failed.”
The MP went further, claiming Ford Kenya squandered an opportunity by rejecting Wekesa early on, only to watch him win convincingly as an independent. His remarks ignited speculation that Ford Kenya may be grappling with internal fractures and succession anxieties.
Meanwhile, Wanyonyi’s political strategy is shifting visibly. After three terms representing Nairobi’s Westlands and shelving a 2022 gubernatorial bid in favour of Azimio’s Polycarp Igathe, Wanyonyi has rebranded himself as Bungoma’s “homecoming candidate.” His decision to run for governor under the ODM ticket has set the stage for a high-stakes ballot duel possibly against a Ford Kenya candidate endorsed by his own brother.
Bungoma remains a Ford Kenya stronghold with Governor Ken Lusaka, Senator Wafula Wakoli and several county leaders elected under the party banner. But the recent by-election result suggests that the ground is shifting and fast.
If Wetangula throws his weight behind another candidate or even seeks to influence the race indirectly the 2027 ballot could turn into an unprecedented family face-off. With former Governor Wycliffe Wangamati and Kiminini MP Didmus Barasa also circling the seat, analysts say Bungoma could deliver one of Kenya’s most unpredictable races yet.
For now, Wetangula remains silent on his brother’s bid a silence that speaks louder with every passing rally.
Whether this becomes a bruising political feud or a strategic family balancing act remains to be seen, but one thing is clear, Bungoma is no longer just voting it’s watching a political drama unfold in real time.
