UDA records 7,772 interested candidates through party aspirants’ forum
By Mabonga Makhanu, January 31, 2026The United Democratic Alliance (UDA) party has recorded 7,772 registered aspirants through its party aspirants forum.
The announcement was made by Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi, who recently folded his Amani National Congress (ANC) party to join President William Ruto’s UDA, during a media interview with Western region stations on Friday, January 30, 2026.
Mudavadi expressed confidence in the exercise, noting that in a short period, over 7772 candidates had already shown interest in vying for UDA tickets. He predicted that by January 4, 2026, when they meet the Head of State at a high-level meeting at State House, the number of aspirants would surpass 12,000.
“Kufika usiku wa leo, wale ambao wameonyesha interest katika Kenya mzima ni 7,772, na hii number inazidi kupanda. Huwenda ikifika Jumatano itakuwa imefika 12,000 au 15,000 ya wale ambao wanatafuta kiti cha kisiasa,” Mudavadi said.
He provided a breakdown of the registration, stating that out of the 7772 interested aspirants, 857 are from the Western region. Mudavadi challenged any party from the region claiming to dominate or enjoy support in the Mulembe region to show similar numbers.
“Itakuwa ni shida sana kupata chama kingine ambacho kinavutia watu vile chama cha UDA kinafanya,” he said.
According to Mudavadi, the exercise has given UDA a national outlook, distinguishing it from other regional parties. He urged residents of the Mulembe region to fully embrace the party ahead of the 2027 elections, saying that doing so would make it easier to negotiate for power in 2027 and beyond and would provide a clearer path to the presidency that the region has long sought.
Mudavadi also called on National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang’ula to fold Ford Kenya and join UDA, arguing that this would strengthen the region’s bargaining power.
UDA aspirant forum
The announcement comes a day after the UDA aspirants forum was officially launched by the party’s National Steering Committee (NSC) under the chairmanship of party leader President William Ruto. The committee stated that the deadline for registering as an aspirant is February 2, 2025.
Notable politicians who have already registered include former Cherangany MP Joshua Kutuny, who will seek to reclaim the seat he lost in 2022.
The registration exercise will culminate in an aspirants’ forum at State House, hosted by the President, on February 4, 2025.