Hon. Joseph Muchane has emerged as the leading aspirant in the race for the Ruchu Ward Member of County Assembly (MCA) seat, commanding 30 per cent voter support, according to a KenyaTrack Survey released on Wednesday ahead of the 2027 General Election.
Muchane leads the field of six aspirants by 10 percentage points over his closest challenger, Hon. Peterson Gathua, who commands 20 per cent, while incumbent MCA Hon. Naomi Maina ranks third with 18 per cent.
The survey, conducted in Ruchu Ward, Kandara Constituency, Murang’a County, places Hon. Henry Kimemia fourth with 12 per cent, followed by Hon. Joseph Njatha at 10 per cent and Hon. Samuel Kaaria at six per cent. Respondents who remain undecided account for four per cent.
Muchane’s leading position puts him ahead of Gathua and Maina as the prospective contenders position themselves for the 2027 contest. His 30 per cent support represents a 12 percentage-point lead over the incumbent, while Gathua maintains a two-point advantage over Maina in the survey.
Gathua’s second-place ranking places him among the leading contenders, with his support standing at nearly twice the level recorded by Kimemia, who occupies fourth position. Njatha follows in fifth place, two percentage points behind Kimemia, while Kaaria completes the list of named aspirants with six per cent.
Maina, who was elected in 2022 on a United Democratic Alliance ticket with 4,397 votes, ranks third in the assessment. Her position places her behind Muchane and Gathua as she prepares to defend her seat in the next General Election.
The four per cent undecided category represents voters who had not settled on a preferred aspirant at the time of the survey. Their eventual choices may change as the candidates intensify engagement with residents and outline their respective development agendas.
The survey was conducted between September 30 and October 26, 2026, and involved 1,269 respondents across Ruchu Ward. KenyaTrack said it used random sampling distributed proportionately to population size and collected responses through telephone interviews targeting adults aged 18 and above in rural and urban areas.
The report indicates a margin of error of plus or minus three percentage points at a 95 per cent confidence level. The findings reflect stated voter preferences during the survey period and should not be interpreted as a definitive prediction of the election outcome.
With Muchane leading at 30 per cent, Gathua at 20 per cent and Maina at 18 per cent, the survey presents an early picture of the Ruchu Ward MCA contest ahead of the 2027 General Election. The rankings could change as the campaign progresses and voters continue evaluating the candidates.
