ODM leaders have criticised Kwale Governor Salim Mvurya and his deputy Fatuma Achani for defecting to Jubilee.
Speaking on Monday, ODM secretary general Agnes Zani said the duo's defection will not affect the party, as the Coast region remains an opposition stronghold.
Zani claimed that the two were only looking for an escape after failing to address the challenges facing residents in the area, especially dispossession and impoverishment.
On his part, Matuga ODM chairman Hassan Chitembe said the party will ensure the governor is not re-elected during next year's poll.
“I would like to tell Mr Mvurya and all other ODM rebels that Kwale County and the entire Coast region is an ODM zone and we will be very quick to send them home,” said Mr Chitembe.
However, Governor Mvurya has vowed to drum up support for Jubilee in the region, adding that the government has launched several development projects in the county.
He said he defected following a plot by a section of ODM leaders to deny him an ODM ticket to defend his seat.
His sentiments were echoed by his deputy Achani, who said the governor was forced to defect because he was “relentlessly and persistently fought, frustrated and eventually hounded out of the party by some officials who are tribalists to the bone.”
President Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto welcomed the move, and lauded the governor's development record.