The former Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko has ditched the Azimio la Umoja One Kenya coalition and joined Deputy President William Ruto’s Kenya Kwanza Alliance.


The Kenya Kwanza flag bearer welcomed Sonko to his team and shared the news via his social media accounts on Saturday morning.

"We welcome Mike Sonko to Kenya Kwanza, the winning team," Ruto wrote.

Sonko’s defection becomes within hours of his threat that he would back UDA’s Hassan Omar for the Mombasa gubernatorial seat if the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) does not clear his running mate Ali Mbogo to run for the same seat.

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That followed the High Court ruling that upheld the decision not to clear him to run for the Mombasa governor’s seat after losing a bid to have his name included on the ballot papers for the Mombasa gubernatorial race.

He petitioned the High Court to compel the electoral body to include his name on the ballot, but the court dismissed his petition on grounds that he had an active appeal at the East African Court of Justice.


Sonko warned that if Mbogo was not cleared to run for the seat, then he would not support the Azimio la Umoja One Kenya candidate Abdulswamad Nassir but back Hassan Omar.

“It’s not about Sonko. Clear Ali Mbogo and let him be on the ballot, failure to which we shall support Hassan Omar. Take this to the bank,” Sonko said.

Sonko was declared unfit to hold office after being impeached from office.