Nurses’ union secretary general Seth Panyako has received a boost of backing from the Western professional caucus in his bid to win the Malava parliamentary seat.

In a statement, the Western Community Stakeholders Forum (WCSF) claimed the November 27th by-elections in the Western region are a test run for voters to rethink their political unity.

WCSF challenged voters in Malava, Kisa East, and Kabuchai to punish Musalia Mudavadi, Moses Wetangula, and Raila Odinga by electing DAP-K candidates.

WCSF Secretary General Daniel Mukhonge said voters should reject Kenya Kwanza and ODM candidates in the poll for ignoring the Luhya community’s support after the 2022 election.

He claimed only DAP-K has the political will of the community heading into the 2027 general election.

“DAP-K is the only Luhya-led parliamentary political party of the moment. Let’s identify with this party and fortify our positions to earn respect as a people who can also lead. Malava presents us an opportunity to exorcise the ghosts of supporting political parties owned by outsiders,” he said.

Also watch: DAP-K supporters reject Malala’s call to withdraw Malava by-election candidate.

ODM is not fielding a candidate in Malava. The Kakamega County ODM factional chairman Fernandes Barasa, who is also the governor, has pledged to support his former MCA and UDA candidate David Ndakwa.

But ODM in Kakamega is in turmoil, with seven out of the ten party MPs in the county opposed to Barasa as chairman, already charting a different political path.

The MPs are Messrs. Nabii Nabwera, Emmanuel Wangwe, Bernard Shinali, Oscar Nabulindo, Elise Muhanda, Titus Khamala, and Christopher Aseka.

Cooperative and SME CS Wycliffe Oparanya, Barasa’s predecessor at the county government and ex-ODM deputy party leader, has also waged war with Barasa over an alleged KRA witch-hunt.

The fallout in ODM, which arose from the August 2025 shambolic county party elections in which both Nabii and Barasa declared themselves chairman, has caused paralysis in the party after ODM leader Raila Odinga reportedly backed the Barasa faction.

“Our prayer is that those differences persist to election day to scuttle the UDA candidate’s bid in Malava and ODM in Kisa East,” Mukhonge charged.

The new commissioners at the elections body, IEBC, will be using the November 27th by-elections as a test run for the 2027 general elections. By-elections in Malava and Kisa East were occasioned by the deaths of immediate former MP Malulu Injendi and former MCA Stephen Maloba, respectively.

The Barasa-led ODM faction has declared support for the UDA candidate David Ndakwa in Malava. UDA will not field a candidate in Kisa East against media owner and thespian Thomas Oyolo of ODM in reciprocation.

Mukhonge said the Malava parliamentary by-election is a pre-2027 Luhya unity test run for voters to define their political destiny, adding that voters should rally behind the DAP-K candidate.