President Uhuru Kenyatta and Jubilee Mombasa governor candidate Suleiman Shahbal during a past campaign rally in Mombasa. [Photo: Suleiman Shahbal/ facebook]
Despite posting an impressive performance in Mombasa County in the just-concluded elections, President Uhuru Kenyatta's headache in the coastal city is far from over.
According to the IEBC's final tally, the Jubilee leader improved his tally of around 64,000 votes in 2013 to over 99,000 votes in 2017, an achievement which may be attributed to his vigorous campaigns spearheaded by his loyalists in the pro-opposition county.However, Uhuru's biggest headache in Mombasa will be how to appease the Jubilee Party losers who delivered over 28% of the votes in the county.All Jubilee aspirants in Mombasa lost in the election with the biggest casualty being Governor candidate Suleiman Shahbal and his running mate Anania Mwaboza.Others include former nominated MP Amina Abdalla who lost her bid for Mombasa Women Rep, outgoing Likoni MP Masoud Mwahima who lost to Mishi Mboko of ODM, former deputy governor Hazel Katana who was eyeing the senator seat and Jomvu MP candidate Karisa Nzai.According to analysts, how President Uhuru and his Jubilee administration handle these candidates who are most likely angling for slots in government, will determine if his attempts to make inroads in Mombasa will succeed in future.