President William Ruto has embarked on a mission to level the playing field in the ruling party, the United Democratic Alliance (UDA), ensuring both moneyed aspirants and those who do not have heavy pockets get a chance to compete.

As part of the initiative, the head of state announced a waiver on the fees charged for candidates who want to run under the United Democratic Alliance Party ahead of the 2027 general elections.

Speaking to UDA aspirants at State House, Nairobi, on Wednesday, February 4, 2026, Ruto will allow aspirants to square it out at the polling stations without being locked out due to financial constraints.

“Ile fees ambayo ilikuwa inalipwa shilingi mia mbili ndio ukuwe candidate, hiyo fees sasa tumewaive. Ile shilingi mia mbili ulikuwa unalipa ndio ukuwe candidate tumewaive ndio kila mtu wanaume na wanawake waonane mundu ku mundu kwa polling station,” Ruto announced without specifying the candidates that would enjoy the waiver.

loosely translated as “We have put a waiver of the fees that candidates had to pay. The 200 shillings that candidates had to pay is now waived so that men and women can face each other head-on at the polling station.”

Initially, the party had indicated that those seeking governor positions are expected to pay Ksh10,000, and senate, MP and women representative aspirants are expected to pay Ksh5,000.

MCA aspirants, on the other hand, are required to pay Ksh2,000.

UDA grassroot elections

To further level the playing field, Ruto said that the UDA party will carry along all people from all corners of sectors without discrimination.

Ruto called on the UDA party to have a keen interest in the UDA grassroots leaders, as these are essential in the formation of a strong party. He emphasised that the grassroots elections set to be repeated will be conducted on a digital platform and will target to elect 20 representatives from every polling station.

In addition, Ruto called on the aspirants to be at the forefront of grassroots leadership, saying that this will form the legitimacy of the party.  The elections will elect representatives from youth representatives, MSMEs and representatives, professional representatives, business representatives, farmers representatives, and a representative from a religious group.

Ruto announced that the process of electing these leaders is expected to be concluded by the end of the year to make sure the party is well prepared ahead of the elections.

The UDA party had previously been conducting, but Ruto, being the UDA party leader, expressed his dissatisfaction over the low voter turnout in the grassroots elections and called for a fresh election. Ruto blamed the leaders for not taking the initiative to guide the process, leading to the failure of the process.