Was Gachagua’s trip to the US a fanciful shot in the dark?
By Samuel Kariuki, July 31, 2025The Democracy for Citizens Party (DCP) leader Rigathi Gachagua’s visit to the United States of America has so far recorded mixed fortunes as he seeks to galvanise Kenyans in the diaspora to back the opposition ahead of the 2027 General Election.
Gachagua left the country on July 9, 2025, for a two-month tour of the US, ostensibly to meet Kenyans and other international stakeholders and discuss issues affecting the country.
His trip is expected to cover Dallas, California, Seattle, Boston and Baltimore for town hall meetings and social gatherings to promote his agenda for the diaspora community.
Although he is yet to officially announce his candidature in the 2027 presidential elections, the former Deputy President has teamed up with opposition leaders Kalonzo Musyoka (Wiper party), Eugene Wamalwa (DAP-K), Martha Karua (PLP) and former Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i in efforts to oust William Ruto from State House.
Some of the former DP’s supporters believe he had scored big during his first tour abroad after being impeached in October 2024, by reaching out to the diaspora community for support and organising fundraising dinners.
However, some political analysts believe Gachagua’s political fanfare abroad may fall short of delivering the dividends he had hoped for.
The tour has been dominated by ethnically-laced speeches with Gachagua being criticised for clinging to his tribal outbursts, one of the major reasons to impeach him as DP.
Opportune platform
In his addresses across the US, the DCP leader has also been long on the all-familiar “One Term” slogan but short on focusing on the challenges facing Kenyans back at home.
The US tour, some analysts say, offered Gachagua an opportune platform to market his ambitions, but the poorly coordinated itinerary has sidelined broader diaspora representation.
The two-month visit could end up being a missed opportunity for meaningful political rebranding.
According to political commentator Barrack Muluka, though the former DP has succeeded in calling out misrule in the country while in the US, his tribal script could undo any political support that the opposition needs.
According to Muluka, Gachagua seems ill-advised on how to play out his political strategy, a move that has given his detractors a foothold in soiling his image.
“He needs advice. I often think that Riggy G and Ruto are cut from the same fabric. That they can’t listen to anybody and they think they know it all, something that is potentially very highly counterproductive. A leader of that calibre should not so openly carry his tribe on the sleeve,” Muluka says.
On Monday, July 28, 2025, while addressing Kenyans in Baltimore, Maryland, Gachagua faced a backlash from some youth who accused him of using Kikuyu while addressing an audience of mixed tribes.
“You need to start positioning yourself as a national, not a tribe leader,” a female youth told him at the meeting.
In his defence, Gachagua, without giving evidence, accused the Kenya Kwanza regime of unfairly targeting the business-minded Mt Kenya community, prompting them to shy away from advancing their investments.
“When you destroy this community, you destroy Kenya. We are the drivers of the Kenyan economy. Since William Ruto declared war on the mountain, the economy is almost collapsing because people have stopped paying taxes,” he told Kenyans in Baltimore.
Constitutional lawyer Newton Mathenge views Gachagua’s tour to be more of a fundraising event rather than a mission to uplift his political ambition.
He, however, argues that the former Mathira MP has become monotonous and predictable over his sustained Mt Kenya narrative.
According to the lawyer, the anti-Ruto perception held by the Mt Kenya residents was not birthed by Gachagua; he only fanned the flames with his “One Term” slogan.
Political analyst Javas Bigambo argues that Gachagua’s trip to America was not properly organised so as to enhance his political profile.
Bigambo opines that for the last one month, Gachagua has not met “consequential” people either from either country.
“We have not seen him meeting policymakers and even significant government officials. So that has robbed him of the prestige of the visit,” Bigambo states.
Additionally, the analyst termed as a self-defeatist agenda the plot by Gachagua to remove President Ruto without telling his supporters how he intends to transform the country.
“His aspiration is not to transform Kenya or to come up with alternative policies that are contrary to those of Ruto,” Bigambo asserts.
“It means that his only political quest at the moment is driving Ruto out of power, which itself is a hollow ambition… his problem with William Ruto is personal and that not everybody else should be roped into it.”