“Ruto Cannot Score Over 10%”: Khalwale Sends Warning Ahead of 2027
Kakamega senator Boni Khalwale poured cold water over recent opinion polls showing President William Ruto riding high in popularity, saying that no way on earth can the Head of State have more than 10 per cent support in any genuine survey.
Khalwale had a pop at the polls on Sunday, October the 4th, 2026 whilst giving a speech at the unveiling of Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna’s brand new party, the Equitable Party. This new party has put Sifuna forward as its candidate for the 2027 general election, which is going to be a pretty big deal in the next year or so.
He took aim at the polls which have put Ruto’s popularity at 45 per cent, saying that this is probably just some dodgy methodology and a way to manipulate what the public thinks – especially in the run up to an election.
Khalwale Claims Ruto Cannot Get More Than 10%
Now he knows how people are going to react to what he’s about to say, but Khalwale reckons Ruto has no chance of getting more than 10 per cent support in a fair poll.
“How can they say last week that Ruto is on 45 per cent? Now let me set the record straight – William Ruto will never get more than 10 per cent in any trustworthy poll in this country, that’s just my honest opinion,” he said. He’s basically saying that all these polls are a load of rubbish and that Ruto doesn’t really have that kind of support.
His comments mean that he’s essentially rejecting all the polls which have shown Ruto doing really well in the popularity stakes.
However, it’s worth noting that Khalwale didn’t back up his 10 per cent claim with any actual evidence or point to any specific poll that supports this.
Khalwale Warns Sifuna Supporters About Opinion Polls
Khalwale also warned Sifuna’s supporters to be a bit more discerning when it comes to reading opinion polls and not just swallowing what they see at face value.
He said that as things heat up ahead of the 2027 election, people are going to be trying to influence public opinion in all sorts of ways – including through polls.
“You all young people have done a great job on social media defending Edwin Sifuna – now the next battle will be to keep countering the propaganda and opinion polls that are going to start coming thick and fast online” he said.
Khalwale reckons this is all part of a big battle for public opinion, and that polls will probably become a key part of the debate between the various rival camps as the election approaches.
Khalwale Calls Opinion Polls a Double-Edged Sword
As a self-proclaimed expert on opinion polling in Kenya (he claims to be the father of the bill that brought in the law on opinion polling in the country), Khalwale had some interesting thoughts to share on this topic.
He reckons that polls can actually work in two ways – depending on how you look at it. And that is that polls can either boost a candidate’s image, or totally trash it, all depending on how the numbers are presented and interpreted.
“Ruto, let me tell you, polls are a bit of a double-edged sword. I mean, they can ruin your chances, or they can make you look like a total star – it all depends on how they’re cut” he said.
Now is probably a good time to take a closer look at opinion polls given that politicians are all scrambling to get ahead of the game for the 2027 presidential election.
Khalwale Revisits 2007 Election Opinion Polls
Khalwale took a trip down memory lane to the 2007 General Election and brought up the whole thing to make his point against the growing influence of opinion polls. He reckoned that polling during that time ended up warping public perceptions of the presidential race to the point people were left scratching their heads not knowing who had come out on top.
“It was the opinion polls in 2007, Edwin Sifuna, that gave people the idea that the country was just about to get overthrown, when in fact it was just a mess of identities in a cloud of opinions – nobody knew who was in the lead,” he claimed.
The senator wanted to use that as a lesson to Sifuna’s supporters on how easily the results of polls can sway people and how damaging that can be come election time.
Sifuna Begins 2027 Presidential Campaign
Khalwale dropped these bombshell comments shortly after Sifuna was officially unveiled as the presidential candidate for The Equitable Party – a brand new political outfit that’s being put together by some big names from the Linda Mwananchi movement.
Sifuna had been eyeing a national role for a while now, having moved on from his stint as Nairobi senator and opposition figure. This latest move marks a significant step in his bid to become a national player in Kenyan politics.
Khalwale’s comments now put an interesting spin on the emerging battle between Sifuna’s camp and Ruto’s administration.
Khalwale Says Youth Will Decide Kenya’s Next President
Khalwale gave a lot of weight to the role of young Kenyans in deciding who’ll be president after the next election. He reckoned young people make up a whopping 75 percent of the country’s population – and as a result, they could hold the key to the outcome come 2027.
“You know what, our young ones need to lock in your people and get behind one candidate you believe in – we’ll give you 100 percent backing, and then it’s up to you to decide how to deliver for us the older folk,” Khalwale said.
Khalwale’s comments are telling of how much work still needs to be done in terms of mobilising young voters as the various parties start building their campaigns ahead of the vote.
Linda Mwananchi Builds Political Vehicle Ahead of 2027
The Equitable Party is tied in with the Linda Mwananchi movement, which has attracted several high profile politicians who want to take the opposition challenge to Ruto to the next level.
The Equitable Party came into being after the movement got the green light from the Office of the Registrar of Political Parties to reserve the Linda Mwananchi name for 90 days – after a ruling from the Political Parties Disputes Tribunal. And now that Sifuna has been named as its presidential candidate, the movement has a new responsibility – building a strong national network to back up its claims to be a serious contender in the 2027 presidential election.
What Khalwale’s Ruto Poll Claim Means for 2027
Khalwale’s comments just highlight how super important opinion polls are likely to be in the run up to the 2027 General Election.
But the thing is, polls can only tell you so much – and it’s easy to mislead the public with dodgy calculations. Khalwale’s claim that Ruto will only get 10 percent of the vote is just his take – its not some sort of independently verified prediction.
As the campaign season heats up, you can expect polls to become a major talking point, with rival camps trying to show off their strength and popularity in the eyes of the public.
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“Ruto Cannot Score Over 10%”: Khalwale Sends Warning Ahead of 2027
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