Inside ODM's final fallout

ODM leader Oburu Oginga (centre), National Assembly Minority Leader Junet Mohamed and Senate Minority Leader Stewart Madzayo arrive for the Parliamentary Group meeting in Nairobi, on March 3, 2026. [Elvis Ogina, Standard]

A showdown is looming in ODM after a faction allied to the party’s secretary general Edwin Sifuna announced it will host a parallel National Delegate Convention (NDC) on March 27, 2026.

In what is seen as an imminent split of the 20-year gigantic movement, the faction led by party leader Oburu Oginga is also scheduled to hold another NDC on the same day. 

ODM Deputy Party Leader and Vihiga senator Godfrey Osotsi, who is allied to Sifuna, said the team resolved to conduct the party’s NDC, terming the special NDC by Dr Oburu’s faction illegal.

“They have called for an NDC and we have resolved as the Linda Mwananchi side that we will have our own NDC. We will also have our resolutions. They have called for an NDC without following the party constitution, and they have left out other people,” Osotsi said at a funeral in Kakamega

He said it was obvious that the Oburu faction will endorse and ratify its plan to support President William Ruto’s re-election in the 2027 polls despite opposition by party members.

Meanwhile, Mombasa Governor Abdulswamad Shariff Nassir has welcomed the planned Linda Mwananchi rally in Mombasa by the rival faction led by Sifuna but cautioned against violence.

Addressing a public meeting at Changamwe in Mombasa over the weekend, Nassir, also another deputy party leader of the Orange party insisted that ODM remained united, dismissing claims that the party has split into factions.

Sifuna is pursuing a different political path from that of Oburu, Nassir, Simba Arati- another deputy party leader, and chairperson Gladys Wanga who are seeking a political alliance with Ruto ahead of 2027.

Sifuna plans to hold a Linda Mwananchi rally in Mombasa County after the end of the holy month of Ramadhan.

He is working with Osotsi, Siaya governor James Orengo, Embakasi East MP Babu Owino, and others.

The party is currently experiencing internal divisions over its political direction ahead of the 2027 general election, with some leaders advocating continued cooperation with the ruling United Democratic Alliance (UDA) while others want ODM to chart an independent path.