The battle for Wajir’s gubernatorial seat in 2027 may ultimately be decided not only at the ballot box, but much earlier inside the political machinery of the United Democratic Alliance (UDA).
And as two increasingly confident aspirants position themselves for the ruling party’s ticket, the contest between former Wajir West MP Ahmed Kolosh Mohamed and Dr Hassan Mohamed Fuje is beginning to look less like an ordinary gubernatorial race and more like a struggle over who has the strongest political network, the deepest national connections and the ability to command the ruling party’s machinery when the nomination moment arrives.
The political temperature rose sharply when Kolosh, while being endorsed by the Mataan community for his gubernatorial bid, delivered a message that was as much about political authority as it was about his candidature. He told supporters, in unmistakably confident terms, that he was the man in charge of UDA affairs in Wajir and dismissed suggestions that someone from another party could simply enter UDA and take control, insisting that the party already had its owners and that he was among them.
That statement was not merely campaign rhetoric. Politically, it was a declaration of confidence in his position within the ruling party.
But Kolosh is not alone in projecting certainty.
Dr Hassan Fuje has also publicly expressed confidence that he will secure the UDA nomination for governor. During the verdict announcement at the Sultanate residence, Fuje presented himself as an aspirant who believes his political journey is headed towards the ruling party’s ticket.
Two men. One ticket. One gubernatorial seat.
And behind that contest lies a much bigger political question: who actually possesses the political muscle to determine the UDA ticket in Wajir?
For Kolosh, the argument is built around experience, established political networks and a documented relationship with the national establishment. His political history with President William Ruto gives him a particularly important advantage in a contest where proximity to national power can become a powerful campaign narrative.
Kolosh previously served as Wajir West MP and has held significant public positions after leaving elective politics. The Kenya Maritime Authority identifies him as its chairman and notes that he assumed the position in January 2025, after previously serving as chairman of the Kenya Roads Board. His appointment to the KMA board was made through a presidential gazette notice, further illustrating his continued presence within the national government establishment.
That history matters politically.
It allows Kolosh to tell Wajir voters that his relationship with Nairobi is not theoretical. He has occupied positions within the national administration and has maintained political relevance beyond the county.
But then comes Fuje.
Fuje represents a different political proposition. His strength is increasingly being built around grassroots mobilisation, community endorsements and the argument that Wajir needs a new political face capable of assembling a broad coalition. His confidence over securing the UDA ticket suggests that his camp does not see the nomination as predetermined in favour of a more established politician.
This is where the UDA contest becomes fascinating.
The nomination is no longer simply about which aspirant can attract crowds. It is about which political network can turn influence into a party ticket.
For Kolosh, the perceived support of powerful figures within the Kenya Kwanza establishment has become central to the political conversation. Among the names increasingly mentioned in Wajir political circles is Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale.
Duale’s role in this unfolding drama is particularly sensitive.
He is one of the most experienced and influential political figures from northern Kenya and remains a prominent member of President Ruto’s administration. His presence in Wajir politics has become increasingly visible, including during the President’s 2026 engagements in the county, where Duale joined local leaders in mobilising political support for Ruto’s 2027 re-election bid.
To Kolosh’s supporters, perceived access to a figure of Duale’s stature could be a significant political asset. It creates the impression that the gubernatorial campaign is connected to a much larger national political network.
But there is another side to the Duale equation.
His growing involvement in northern Kenya politics has also generated accusations from political rivals that he is interfering in county political affairs. Those accusations are not confined to Wajir. In neighbouring Garissa, Senator Abdul Haji recently publicly accused Duale of meddling in local political affairs, demonstrating just how politically charged the question of Duale’s regional influence has become.
That makes Duale’s perceived role in Wajir a double-edged sword.
For a candidate backed by the national establishment, his influence can be presented as a gateway to Nairobi and a potential source of political leverage. But to opponents, the same influence can be portrayed as outside interference in a county whose political future should be determined primarily by its own voters.
That debate could become one of the defining narratives of the 2027 Wajir gubernatorial contest.
And this is precisely why the UDA ticket matters so much.
For Kolosh and Fuje, winning the ruling party’s nomination would provide more than a party symbol on the ballot. It would offer the political credibility of being the candidate associated with the national administration at a time when Kenya’s political landscape is already beginning to organise itself around the 2027 presidential contest.
The UDA ticket could therefore become a political weapon.
The candidate who secures it can argue that he has not only defeated his rival inside the nomination process but has also emerged as the person most capable of connecting Wajir to the national government.
Yet there is an important danger in relying too heavily on that argument.
Wajir voters will ultimately have to decide whether national connections are enough.
A candidate may have access to senior politicians in Nairobi, but can that access translate into roads, health services, water, jobs, education, investment and accountable county government? Can political proximity become actual development? Or does the national connection simply become another campaign slogan?
That is where the Kolosh-Fuje contest becomes much deeper than a fight between two individuals.
Kolosh comes with political experience, national-government connections and a history of occupying important public positions. Fuje is attempting to turn growing grassroots support and community mobilisation into a countywide political movement.
Kolosh’s political proposition is essentially one of established influence: I know the system, I have been inside it, and I understand how power works.
Fuje’s proposition is emerging as something different: Wajir needs a new political force, and grassroots confidence can challenge established networks.
The question is which proposition will resonate more strongly with voters.
And then there is the most dangerous question of all: is the UDA nomination genuinely going to be an open contest between competing political forces, or will the strength of national alliances determine the winner before Wajir voters ever reach the ballot box?
That is the question now hanging over the Wajir gubernatorial race.
Because when Ahmed Kolosh says he is “the man in charge” of UDA in Wajir, and when Hassan Fuje simultaneously expresses confidence that he will secure the same ticket, both men are making more than campaign declarations.
They are effectively telling Wajir that they believe they possess the political numbers, networks and influence necessary to emerge victorious.
Only one of them can be right.
And as the 2027 contest moves closer, Wajir may soon be forced to answer the biggest question of this political season:
Will the next governor of Wajir emerge from the strength of the people on the ground
or from the power of the political networks operating behind the scenes?