• Guyo was largely known in the city as the Nairobi County Assembly Majority leader.
• Arati was elected on an ODM ticket.
Image: FILE
In the just concluded August 9 general election, which has been termed as one of the most competitive in the history of Kenya, some occurrences cannot go unnoticed.
Part of these occurrences includes the bold moves made by a few politicians that looked huge and would never come to pass.
These politicians followed dreams of leading in higher capacities than they did in the city, and while some failed in their quests, Abdi Ibrahim Hassan alias Guyo and Simba Arati's dreams were actualised.
Guyo was largely known in the city as the Nairobi County Assembly Majority leader. This came after previously serving as the minority leader between 2013 and 2017.
Guyo had initially set his eyes on the Embakasi Central MP seat, but an endorsement from outgoing Isiolo Governor Mohamed Kuti had him change his aspirations.
He took the bull by its horns and after the election, Guyo is the Governor-elect for Isiolo, becoming the first sitting MCA in the history of Kenya to be elected governor.
Guyo was elected on a Jubilee ticket.
He was first elected councillor of Matopeni in 2007, a position he served for five years until the devolved units came into existence.
Others have always chosen the longer route of either vying for MP or Senate before finally going for the top county seat.
Image: FILE
Another politician who defied odds despite going against senior politicians in the county of Kisii was Simba Arati.
After serving as Dagoretti North MP for two terms, he set his eyes on the Kisii Gubernatorial seat, a fete most people termed a pipe dream.
However, when the time for announcing the winner, Arati emerged victorious defeating veteran politicians who had been in the political spheres of the county for decades.
Arati was elected on an ODM ticket.
Other politicians who set their eyes away from Nairobi included former governors Evans Kidero and Mike Sonko. The two, whose reigns saw the city largely struggle with the garbage menace, traffic and lack of water among other issues decided to try their luck elsewhere after things didn't work out in Nairobi.
Kidero who went to Homa Bay County lost to Gladys Wanga in the ODM nominations and the August 9 elections as an independent. Sonko who wanted to vie in Mombasa was stopped after the Supreme Court of Kenya upheld his impeachment in Nairobi.
Former Nairobi County Chief officer for Environment Abdi Mohamed was also among the lucky lot who managed to secure elective slots. He was elected Member of Parliament for Fafi Constituency.
Charles Kerich who was the Nairobi CEC for Lands, Housing and Urban Planning also contested the UDA ticket for Bomet Central Constituency, which he lost.
Another was Vesca Kangogo who sought the UDA ticket in the Uasin Gishu gubernatorial race but lost to Jonathan Bii, the governor-elect for the county.
A host of City MCAs including; Elias Otieno (Kilelelshwa), Wilfred Ochola (Utalii) and Kennedy Obuya (Imara Daima) all sought parliamentary seats in Suna East, Nyakach and Karachuonyo constituencies.