Babu Owino Backs Edwin Sifuna for Two Presidential Terms, Delays Own Bid

Embakasi East Member of Parliament Babu Owino announced that he will support Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna if the senator wins the 2027 presidential election and will allow Sifuna to serve two full terms before pursuing the presidency himself.

The declaration was made on Thursday October 22, 2026 during a gathering of the Linda Mwananchi women’s league, where members presented Owino with a birthday cake.

Owino said Sifuna’s potential tenure would last ten years, stating “Sifuna akipata presidency 2027, aende two terms, by 2037, 10 years amemaliza,” and added that he would then look for the presidency for two further terms.

He also indicated that he intends to contest the Nairobi gubernatorial seat in the 2027 General Election, defend it in 2032, and only after Sifuna’s exit from office would he seek the presidency.

In August 2026 Owino had previously told a radio audience that he planned to serve one term as Nairobi governor before running for president in 2032, a timeline that conflicted with Sifuna’s possible re-election.

The Linda Mwananchi movement has positioned Sifuna as its preferred presidential candidate for the August 10 2027 General Election and identified Owino as its preferred candidate for the Nairobi governor’s seat.

On October 4, 2026 Sifuna unveiled The Equitable Party as his political vehicle and announced plans to rebrand it under the Linda Mwananchi name; Owino publicly backed the move, describing Sifuna as a brother and saying “I support my brother Sifuna 100 percent to run for presidency.”

Earlier tensions between the two leaders emerged after the Jacaranda rally and when Owino launched his own political outfit, The Mwananchi Party (TMP), but he has continued to appear alongside Sifuna at public events and reiterates his unconditional support for the senator’s presidential bid.