President William Ruto with other heads of state in Addis Ababa where he led Kenya's delegation in supporting Raila Odinga's bid for the AUC chairmanship seat, February 15, 2025. /PCSPresident William Ruto has said his support for Raila Odinga in the African Union Commission chairmanship race had nothing to do with safeguarding his own political interests.
Speaking in Addis Ababa on Sunday, Ruto said he supported Raila because his vision for the leadership of the continental bloc mirrored Kenya's interests.
"When he (Raila) announced that he wanted to run for the African Union Commission (AUC) chairperson, I told him I would support him. It was not about politics or 2022 or 2027,” he said.
“It was about the only Kenyan who had aspired to run for a position that we have looked for as a country.”
Ruto's clarification followed claims by a section of political commentators in different fora that Ruto's unwavering support for Raila could be a political calculation to eliminate stiff competition ahead of the 2027 presidential race.
The President spoke a day after Raila lost the AUC seat to Djibouti’s Mahmoud Ali Youssouf in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Ruto stated that he promised Raila that he would put the entire government machinery and his personal support behind him and delivered on the pledge.
The President added that the former Prime Minister, on his part, did not disappoint as he equally put his best foot forward from the onset of the campaign trail.
"Raila Odinga did not disappoint. He did the best. He met everybody that needed to be met. He spoke to everybody that needed to be spoken to. He did a fantastic job in the debate and in fact, even the naysayers agreed that he came out better than the others in the debate," Ruto said.
The President was speaking to a group of Kenyan MPs who travelled to Addis Ababa to be in soliderity with Raila as he did battle for the top AUC seat.
Reminiscing the anti-government protests on June 25, 2024, the President said that period brought about a new dawn for Kenya.
The Gen Z-led anti-government protests prompted Ruto to incorporate Raila allies in his broad-based government, a move largely seen as the antidot to the revolt that almost brought his government to its knees.
While addressing the same congregation of MPs, Raila said the President did “everything possible” to support his campaign for the continental role, and said Kenyans should ignore blame games.
“There will be a lot of blame games: I did not do much as expected; I am tired and too old; Ruto was not genuine in supporting me…Ruto did everything possible for this campaign. He gave me all the logistical support I needed and made my appointments to meet all leaders on the continent,” Raila said.
