After being humbled at the ballot by Meru Governor Kawira Mwangaza in last year's election, Mithika Linturi was in unfamiliar territory and staring at an uncertain future.
When the results of the governor's election were announced by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), Linturi was not the only casualty of Mwangaza's historic victory. Mwangaza had also trounced the incumbent, Kiraitu Murungi, a man who had never tasted any election defeat in his over three decades in political office.