Jalang’o declares interest in being Nairobi governor in 2032
By Arnold Ngure, September 4, 2025Lang’ata MP Phelix Odiwuor alias Jalang’o has declared an interest in becoming the governor of Nairobi County in 2032.
Speaking during an interview at a vernacular radio station on Thursday, September 4, 2025. Jalang’o revealed that nothing would stop him from seeking the gubernatorial seat.
“Right now, my focus is on serving the people of Lang’ata, but in 2032, I will vie for Nairobi governor. What prevents me from vying for the seat?” he posed.
Stability in Nairobi
“As the governor of Nairobi, I will occasion an unprecedented stability in the county. Thereafter, I will be seeking the highest office in the land.”
Jalang’o crossed over from a celebrated media personality into politics by winning against former Lang’ata MP Nixon Korir in the 2022 general elections.
In the hotly contested election, Jalang’o garnered 38,948 votes against Korir’s 36,836 after vying on an ODM ticket.
While he switched allegiance to the ruling UDA Party upon entering Parliament, this shift almost cost him his seat after ODM leaders called for disciplinary action against him.
County politics
He would later be vindicated after ODM Party leader Raila Odinga joined President William Ruto to form a broad-based government.
The Nairobi gubernatorial race is faced with a leadership crisis once again after Governor Johnson Sakaja was saved by a quick meeting between the MCAs and ODM and UDA party leaders.
Since the inception of devolution, Nairobi has never had a governor serving for two consecutive terms, and Sakaja is poised to come face-to-face with the trend in his re-election bid of 2027.
Already, Embakasi East MP Babu Owino has declared an interest in succeeding Sakaja, accusing him of misgovernance, incompetence, and inability to deliver on his mandate.
While Sakaja seems to enjoy the endorsement of Raila and a tacit approval by Ruto, Babu Owino seeks to go it alone in a daring stab at the gubernatorial race.
Jalang’o is equally expected to throw a spanner in the works with his interest in becoming governor of Nairobi in 2032.