Luo Nyanza region has four counties: Kisumu, Siaya, Homa Bay and Migori, which all share Lake Victoria.
Kisumu is the biggest urban settlement in the region.
The politics surrounding the choice of governor candidates have been centred around those supporting Azimio-Oka presidential candidate Raila Odinga.
Governors Cornel Rasanga (Siaya), Cyprian Awiti (Homa Bay) and Okoth Obado (Migori ) are all retiring and won’t seek a fresh mandate with the people.
The three except Kisumu have had the same governors since devolution.
Residents of the four counties have decried poor services and lack of development with the blame targeting the outgoing leaders they claim sent the counties to the grave.
The counties are set for one of the fiercely contested elections in August.
Homa Bay Woman Representative Gladys Wanga running on an ODM ticket will battle it out with former Nairobi Governor Evans Kidero.
Governor Anyang' Nyongo will seek to retain the Kisumu seat against former Governor Jack Ranguma.
In Siaya, Senator James Orengo and Nicholas Gumbo are battling it out in another tricky affair.
Migori seems to be the most interesting considering its cosmopolitan nature.
The county has a majority of Luos, a good number of Abakuria, and the Abasuba and Abagusii tribes.
Tribe factor, clannism will take centre stage in the county.
The three candidates in Migori Ochillo Ayacko (ODM), John Pesa (DAP-K) and Dalmas Otieno (Jubilee) have a big task in wooing voters even as the outgoing governor hinted at supporting the DAP-K candidate.
It's important to note that Migori is the only Luo Nyanza county that has ever produced a non-ODM governor—Okoth Obado, PDP 2013.
It’s also the only Luo Nyanza county that elected Jubilee MCAs in the 2013 and 2017 elections.
Pesa comes from the minority Karungu clan of the Luo while rival Dalmas Otieno and Ayacko come from the largely Kamagambo and Sakwa clans.
All the three top contenders have picked their running mates from the Kuria tribe.
The latest opinion polls put Ayacko ahead with Pesa a distant second. Otieno is ranked third.
Ayacko is likely to win with 80 per cent of the vote-rich sugar belt tilting towards him.
He is likely to get a fair share of the Abakuria approximately 100,000 votes and pick some sizeable votes from the large expansive Nyatike – the perceived stronghold of Pesa.
Otieno is vying on a Jubilee ticket which most residents haven’t embraced despite its association with ODM under Azimio.
As the three candidates push to consolidate their votes, health being a devolved function is an area on which the candidates are pitching their tents on.
Ayacko focuses on the human resource where he promises absorption of more health workers into the government.
Pesa focuses on community health volunteers with a promise to increase or introduce monthly stipends.
All the four counties in Luo Nyanza are highly likely to elect the ODM candidates.
Kenya Union of Clinical Officers national deputy secretary general
Edited by Kiilu Damaris