Gladys Wanga handed ODM ticket in Homa Bay governor race after 7 aspirants step down

Homa Bay Woman Representative Gladys Wanga will now fly the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party ticket in the county’s gubernatorial race at the upcoming August elections.

This is according to the party leader Raila Odinga who announced that all seven aspirants who were previously seeking the party ticket had resolved to back Wanga’s candidature.

Odinga, addressing the media outside a Nairobi hotel on Thursday, said all the aspirants had engaged in long consultations with each other and arrived at the decision.

The ODM chief, in the same sense, revealed that the leaders also settled on a unanimous choice for Wanga’s running mate, in former Kasipul Member of Parliament Oyugi Magwanga.

“There are those aspirants who have been running for the governorship position in Homa Bay County. They have been having a meeting and invited us as party officials to come and have consultations with them. They’ve had very extensive consultations, at the end of which an agreement has been reached by way of consensus,” said Odinga.

“Out of the seven contestants who were here, they’ve all agreed to step down and back Gladys Wanga as the party candidate in the Homa Bay County gubernatorial race. In the same spirit, they’ve also nominated her running mate as Oyugi Magwanga.”

Odinga further announced that the party had since embraced the decision by the aspirants and issued Wanga with the certificate.

He hence flagged the team off to campaign for Wanga and ensure that the party retains the Homa Bay gubernatorial seat at the forthcoming polls.

“The party has taken note and has agreed and issued a certificate to Gladys Wanga as the ODM party candidate in the gubernatorial race for Homa Bay County,” he said.

“This is a voluntary exercise; our rules provide for consensus-building, nomination by delegates and members, or direct nomination by the party. This is not a direct nomination, this has come about as a result of consensus.”