Mr President, voters want projects that impact their lives

President William Ruto inspects projects during his tour of Kajiado county. [Peterson Githaiga, Standard]

If President William Ruto is doing all these projects, why does he seem to be on the defensive vis-a-bus the decorate? The answer to this question requires a deep understanding of how voters think (and feel) about projects.

When all is said and done, the fact of the matter is that electoral competition creates incentives for politicians to launch as many projects as they can. This is for the simple reason that projects are readily visible and attributable. Any voter who sees a road being built can attach it to the effort of a particular politician. Of course sometimes voters can be wrong, but often they are right.