Residents of Kondele in Kisumu on Saturday, February 15, 2025, chanted ‘Ruto must go’ slogans moments after Djibouti’s Mahmoud Ali Youssouf was declared the winner of the African Union Commission (AUC) chairmanship race.

The locals expressed their disappointment after the former Prime Minister withdrew from the race after the sixth round of voting.

“Ruto must go…. Ruto must go… Ruto must go.…” they chanted.

Raila lost the #AUCElections and the people of Kondele immediately started chanting 'Ruto Must Go!' We're back to default settings 😂😂 pic.twitter.com/aBvaltqlmB

— Ian Duncan (@IanDuncan__) February 15, 2025

The locals were following the live broadcast of the AUC elections from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on a giant screen that had been erected under the Kondele flyover.

The residents had earlier on expressed confidence that Raila would clinch the AUC chairmanship seat and were eagerly waiting for the voting and subsequent announcement of the results.

However, the results did not go as they had expected.

One of the residents, while speaking just before the AUC vote, had said that he would slaughter goats and chickens to celebrate Raila’s win.

“Niko na hakika Raila raundi hii anaenda kushinda. Mbuzi tumeweka karibu 500, kuku karibu 100 hatuchinji saa hii, tunangoja masaa atangazwe,” one of the residents who identified himself as Owino said in a vox pop with one of the local TV stations.

A similar watch party was being held in the Nairobi Central Business District (CBD), along the Aga Khan Walk.

Ruto campaigns for Raila

President Ruto had promised to deliver a Raila victory in the just-concluded AUC vote.

On February 26, 2024, President Ruto and Raila pulled an unexpected move that revealed Kenya’s interest in taking a stab at the continental top seat—the African Union Commission (AUC) chairmanship.

Ruto and Raila, who were then largely viewed as political rivals, flew to Uganda and met President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni.

Their discussions confirmed reports that the former prime minister had declared interest in the African Union Commission Chairmanship, sparking a myriad of reactions from the Kenyan political space.

After the Ugandan meeting, Raila embarked on intense deliberations and discussions before fully launching his campaign to replace Moussa Faki Mahamat.

Fully bankrolled by the Kenya Kwanza’s administration, he flew to different parts of the continent, capitalizing on his rich network to convince the heads of state to vote for him.

With the help of his secretariat, Raila pitched his vision to the presidents, some of whom openly endorsed him, but others confirmed their meeting without revealing where their vote would go.

Raila drops out

Raila dropped out of the race after round six that saw Mahmoud garner 26 votes, with the former PM managing 22 votes.

The AUC vote went to seven rounds of voting after none of the candidates managed to garner at least 33 votes, which is two-thirds of the heads of state who voted. The new AUC chairman managed to get the 33 votes in the seventh round.

Raila leads two rounds

In the first round, Kenya’s candidate, Raila, took the lead after he garnered 20 votes, followed closely by his Djibouti rival, who garnered 18 votes, and Richard Randriamandrato of Madagascar got 10 votes.

In the second round, Raila got 22 votes, Mahmoud Ali Youssouf got 19, and Randriamandrato garnered seven votes. One abstained.

In the third round, Djibouti’s Mahmoud Ali Youssouf took the lead with 23 votes, followed closely by Raila, who got 20 votes, with Madagascar’s Randriamandrato garnering five. One abstained in this round.

The race narrowed to two candidates after the Madagascar candidate was dropped after the third round.

In the fourth round, Mahmoud Ali Youssouf still took the lead with 25 votes, with Raila getting 21. Two votes were spoiled, with two abstentions.

In the fifth round, the Djibouti candidate garnered 26 votes, with Raila managing 21 votes with two abstentions.