Uasin Gishu Woman Representative Candidate on an Independent ticket Rael Chebichii at a past event. [Photo: Courtesy]
With barely a month to the general elections, candidates eyeing various elective positions are out and about wooing voters with hope of emerging victorious.
In Uasin Gishu, traditionally winning a Jubilee ticket would have been almost a guarantee of wining the general election but things have changed.
Despite the county being a Jubilee stronghold, several of the party's nominees and not yet assured of the win in August 8 polls and have to work extra hard.
Top in the list of the nominees having an uphill task ahead of the polls is governor Jackson Mandago who is engaged in fierce battle with tycoon Bundotich Zedekiah Buzeki.
The two faced off during the party primaries with Mandago emerging victorious but Buzeki contested the results claiming the exercise was skewed and opted to vie as an independent candidate.
Just like Buzeki, former Radio Broadcaster Robert Arap Kemei also opted to vie as an independent candidate after finishing second behind Prof Margret Kamar in the Senate race which will now be settled at the ballot.
Gladys Boss Shollei is another Jubilee nominee with sleepless nights as she is facing a formidable independent candidate Rael Chebichii for the Woman Representative seat.
The former Judiciary Registrar has an upper hand in the race but knows very well that the threat posed by Chebiii cannot be ignored.
In Turbo constituency, Kevin Okwara of Jubilee will face off with independent candidate Janet Rotich with ethnic politics expected to play a critical role on who wins.
Okwara is considered an outsider and enjoys massive the support from the Non-Kalenjins in the area while Rotich is banking on the dominant Kalenjin community to clinch the seat.
Caleb Kositany is another Jubilee nominee not assured of a win in August. He is facing a strong competition from KANU's Jonathan Bii for the Soy constituency race.