The sleeping giant of Kenyan politics is awake, and it is angry. The battle for the soul of Mount Kenya has officially begun, with impeached Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua launching a guerrilla political war against his former boss.

Less than two years to the 2027 General Election, the illusion of a united UDA mountain bloc lies in ruins. Gachagua, now leading the Democracy for Citizens Party (DCP), is systematically dismantling President William Ruto’s grip on the region, framing the upcoming poll as a referendum on "betrayal."

"It Is Actually Very Simple"

While pundits analyze complex clan dynamics, local leaders argue the equation is straightforward. "I do not think Mt Kenya politics is what you would call complicated or sophisticated," noted Kaguchia, a key observer of the region’s pulse. "It is actually very simple: trust has been broken."

The strategies being deployed are ruthless:

• The Victim Card: Gachagua is successfully painting his impeachment as an attack on the community itself.
• Strategic Alliances: The DCP is courting former President Uhuru Kenyatta’s Jubilee faction, seeking to unite the "sons of the soil" against an external enemy.
• Economic Grievances: The narrative is shifting from "Bottom-Up" to "We are being taxed to death," resonating with the struggling coffee and tea farmers.

Ruto’s Counter-Strike

President Ruto is not sitting idle. His "baking a bigger cake" narrative aims to show that the region benefits more from being in government than in opposition. But with Gachagua’s "Ruto Must Go" chants gaining volume in town halls from Nyeri to Meru, the President faces a nightmare scenario: a hostile Mountain that could deny him the 50% + 1 threshold.

The mountain does not forget, and it rarely forgives. As 2027 looms, the region is transforming from a vote basket into a political minefield.