As the campaign season heats up ahead of the August 9 General Election, family units as granular as blood-brothers and sisters are exercising freedom of choice by aligning themselves with the country's top opposing camps in the upcoming election - which tends to get murkier with time.



The beauty of a mature democracy emerged when former Prime Minister Raila Odinga appointed Isaiah Kindiki, the blood brother of Tharaka Nithi Senator Kithure Kindiki, as one of his campaign agents. The development came barely 24 hours after Deputy President William Ruto appointed Kithure as his Chief Agent.

On a lower political scale, members of prominent families have had to deal with an influx of relatives who have either decided to align themselves with Azimio la Umoja headed by Raila or Kenya Kwanza led by Ruto. The two are the biggest political formations in the country today.

Here are seven of the leading prominent families that are going toe to toe this election cycle.

1. Kithure Kindiki and his brother Isaiah
Delivered as somewhat of a shock, Raila appointed Isaiah Kindiki as one of his chief agents a day after Deputy President William Ruto had tapped into Kithure Kindiki to lead his camp in the same capacity.

Kithure's appointment was widely reported as a fall-back post for the politician after he missed out on the running mate slot.

Coming from a family of geniuses, the two brothers all attained professor titles in their academic pursuits but seemingly failed to settle on one political formation.

Kithure is a long-time loyal Ruto ally while his brother is a longtime ODM operative who has stuck with Raila for years.

2. Moses Kuria and his brother Aloise Kinyanjui
For years, Gatundu South MP Moses Kuria had been a loyalist of President Uhuru Kenyatta and Jubilee Party and helped sell its agenda in Mt Kenya Region.

Recently, however, through his Chama Cha Kazi (CCK) party, the political heavyweight, who is eyeing the Kiambu Gubernatorial seat, while be facing off with his younger brother, Aloise Kinyanjui, who stayed put in Jubilee.

Initially, Aloise had announced plans to contest under CCK party but the fallout occurred when he defected to Jubilee.

In mid-April, Kinyanjui secured a direct ticket by the Jubilee Party to fly its flag in the Juja parliamentary race which now pits them directly against each other.

3. Moses Wetangula and his brother Tim Wanyonyi
Westlands MP Tim Wanyonyi's rise to the top is nothing short of miraculous and continues to chart his own path away from his brother Moses Wetangula's success as a party leader.

In 2017, the duo was more, or less, within the same camp as Wetangula's Ford-Kenya party formed part of the now-defunct National Super Alliance (Nasa) Coalition. The movement was headed by Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) where Wanyonyi is a member.

This cycle, however, the duo has gone asunder after Wetangula's Ford-Kenya became a founding party at Kenya Kwanza Alliance. Wetangula aims to retain his Senatorial seat on that ticket.

Wanyonyi, on the other hand, is seeking to defend his seat under an ODM ticket.

4. Keriako Tobiko and his sister Peris

In this case, the split was three-ways. First, Kishanto ole Suuji, the husband of Kajiado East MP Peris Tobiko, reported Deputy President William Ruto and his team as intruders into his property. The team had gone to the home for a meeting with Peris.

At the time, Suuji made it clear that he did not 'support the political activity on my farm in Kajiado county.'

In the family, Peris Tobiko's choice did not just irk her husband but also affected his brother, Cabinet Secretary for Environment Keriako Tobiko.

Tobiko, who is a close ally of President Uhuru Kenyatta and Raila Odinga, is a well-known critic of the DP and at one point, he referred to Ruto as 'the President's clerk.'

Peris later on publicly apologised to Ruto over her brother's "demeaning remarks".

5. Okoth Obado and his wife

In Migori, the political landscape is playing a little differently inside the household of its Governor Okoth Obado.

As the campaigns heat up, Obado, who aligned himself with Deputy President William Ruto, believes that he has made the right choice in successfully retaining his own influence. He was eventually appointed as the Nyanza regional coordinator.

His wife, Hellen Adhiambo, on the other hand, is not too sure about her husband's choice. For her, she maintains that her vote is a preserve for former Prime Minister Raila Odinga.

“Raila is vying for president, I am vying as a woman representative but he has my vote,” assured Adhiambo.

So intense is the political passion that Hellen announced that she had opted to drop her husband's surname, Obado, and have her maiden name - Adhiambo - on the ballot.

"Do not associate me with the governor's legacy and anything to do with him that was his tenure I'm pleading with you to give me a chance as Hellen, not as the governor's wife," she told supporters last week.

6. Uhuru Kenyatta and his cousin Kung'u
The political split has not spared the ruling party either. President Uhuru Kenyatta and his cousin Kung'u Muigai have been on the same political side for years but this year they have found themselves on different camps.

After the handshake between Uhuru and former Prime Minister Raila Odinga, the Head of State has really not hidden the fact that he supports the former Premier's quest to succeed him.

Kung'u, on the other hand, has been warming up to the Deputy President by aligning with National Assembly Speaker Justin Muturi.

"I met Muturi through my cousin while they were young men. I have nurtured them and we have come a long way. I may not have all the answers but in the coming days, you will see his dreams come true.

"When that statement of yangu kumi yake kumi was made, it raised a lot of heat and I convened a meeting as the patron of the Kikuyu Council elders. We adopted the proclamation and that is where we stand to date because when an elder says something, they can never go back on their word," Kung'u stated.

Muigai, however, maintains that he has the utmost respect for both the President and former Prime Minister.

7. Mutahi Ngunyi and David Chirchir
As the campaigns peak, outspoken political analyst Mutahi Ngunyi has become a critical member of the president's think tank in the ongoing political maneuvers.

Ngunyi is, however, a brother-in-law to the Chief of Staff in Ruto's office - David Chirchir - who also serves as a key strategist in Kenya Kwanza.

Ngunyi and Chirchir are married to the daughters of Ambassador Ernest Cheruiyot Lang'at who passed on last year at the age of 88.