Senate Speaker Ken Lusaka has been re-elected as the governor of Bungoma county five years after he was voted out following a scandal that rocked his administration.
Lusaka defied odds to bounce back to county governorship after securing 244,298 votes to floor the incumbent Wycliffe Wangamati who vied on the DAP-K ticket.
Wangamati conceded early defeat even before the official announcement from the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) was made to announce the results.
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Wangamati, in a message posted to his social media accounts on Thursday, August 11, 2022, congratulated Lusaka after it became certain he would not win the race.
“The people of Bungoma have spoken and we respect that decision. I want to congratulate Kenneth Lusaka on his election as the Governor of Bungoma County. I want to thank every citizen of Bungoma who thought and believed in my vision for Bungoma and all those who supported my campaigns for re-election and voted for me,” The exiting one-term county boss wrote.
“To each one of you, I want you to know that every single vote, every single contribution, every word of advice and encouragement was and remains greatly appreciated. To the great people of Bungoma, thank you for your trust and confidence on the basis of which I have served as your second Governor for the last 5 years," he added.
Bungoma voted along party line, rewarding aspirants who contested on Moses Wetang’ula's Ford Kenya party and punishing rebels who broke away to form Democratic Action Party of Kenya (DAP-K) after a failed coup to oust Weta.
All political heavyweights in Bungoma who attempted to topple Wetang’ula from the helm of Ford Kenya in May 2020 paid a heavy price in the August 9 2022 polls.
Bungoma governor Wangamati, legislators Wafula Wamunyinyi (MP Kanduyi) and Eseli Simiyu (MP Tongaren) all lost their seats in this election.
Lusaka makes the biggest comeback
At the end of his tenure as Bungoma's first governor, Lusaka was tainted by allegations of graft which caused him to lose the seat to Wangamati in the 2017 general election.
Lusaka made headlines in Kenya and outside the country in 2015 when his administration bought 10 wheelbarrows at a cost of Ksh109,320 each.
Irate residents in Bungoma led by then leader of the majority in the Bungoma County Assembly Majimbo Okumu and Ford Kenya youth leader in Bungoma David Wakoli stormed Lusaka's office demanding to be addressed by him over the matter.
