Policy and political analyst Odoyo Owidi has claimed that the late former Prime Minister Raila Odinga had secretly crafted a plan to front President William Ruto as the ODM presidential candidate in the 2027 general elections.
Speaking during a radio interview on Tuesday, October 21, 2025, Owidi a longtime insider in ODM alleged that Raila had quietly made peace with Ruto before his passing and even saw him as the best possible flagbearer to sustain the Orange Movement’s legacy.
“Ruto was Raila’s best ODM candidate. From where I sit, there was a plan being implemented. President William Ruto was going to run on the ODM ticket, and UDA was going to be collapsed into ODM,” Owidi revealed.
His remarks come amid growing internal divisions within ODM, with a section of party members reportedly supporting the idea of Ruto’s re-election under the ODM banner.
While ODM Secretary General Edwin Sifuna has maintained that the party will field its own candidate in 2027, Owidi insists that Raila’s earlier instructions suggested a broader political alignment involving Ruto.
“I replayed Raila’s instructions many times. He said clearly that there was a plan being implemented. It’s possible he meant Ruto was part of that plan,” Owidi added.
Owidi further highlighted Raila’s authoritative leadership style, noting that decisions within ODM were often directives rather than subjects of internal debate.
“Everyone in ODM knew when Baba said left, we went left. When he said right, we went right,” he explained.
Interestingly, Kisii Governor and ODM Deputy Party Leader Simba Arati has recently extended an olive branch to President Ruto, encouraging him to return to ODM the party he helped found before their political fallout.
If true, Owidi’s claims could dramatically reshape Kenya’s political landscape ahead of the 2027 general elections, signaling a potential realignment between Ruto’s UDA and Raila’s ODM.
