I spent most of last night and today flipping through US TV channels, trying to follow one of the most consequential elections in history. Needless to say, the ruling Republicans have ‘seen very bad things.’
The Democrats have officially taken control of both the US House of Representatives and the US Senate, ending the Republican trifecta that began in January 2025 when President Donald Trump was sworn in for a second term. In Kenyan terms, the Democrats, the equivalent of the United Opposition, now hold the majority of the seats in both chambers of the legislature.
This will cripple Trump’s legislative agenda, since his rivals control both chambers. Why does this matter to us? Consider our own Executive and Legislature, and their relationship over the last four years.
President William Ruto has had the Senate and the National Assembly wrapped around his finger since his UDA party holds the majority in both houses. This has helped him pass some contentious laws such as the Finance Bill 2024, which led to mass protests by Gen Zs in June that year and in the years after. Take that power away, and he would be unable to get things done.
President Trump has alluded to using his veto powers to get around the new hurdles, but this rarely ends well for incumbents. Back home, President Ruto continues to face growing public dissatisfaction and criticism over the high cost of living, inflation, corruption, and extrajudicial killings, to name a few.
With the General Election just nine months away, Kenyans have lessons to learn from the Americans, from whom they extensively borrow, including the 2010 Constitution. First, it is possible to wound the Executive and render it toothless, whether or not the president is reelected. That would require the opposition to hold 50 percent plus one of both the National Assembly and the Senate. It may not play out so neatly, though: politicians aren’t so honorable and could be bought off in the washroom corridors of parliament, as has been reported previously.
Second, Kenyans have every right to be angry. They have every right to call out their president, MPs, and any other elected official, and even recall them. But the difference between the Americans and us is that we underestimate ourselves. Whereas they took their anger over the war in Iran and the high cost of living to the ballot. We take ours to the streets, in khaki combat trousers with a bottle of water, and then online for a few clicks. The discontent and exasperation Kenyans show online is good for situational awareness and eyeballs, but it doesn’t translate to anything beyond that. For the change they truly desire, Gen Zs must come out and vote because that is where the real power is.
The government, too, has a lesson to learn. President Ruto must not be oblivious to the true picture on the ground. His administration has been too focused on documenting its achievements, mainly the Affordable Housing Program, that it has missed how far the purchasing power of its constituents has fallen. According to the KNBS, consumer purchasing power has plummeted because of inflation, which peaked at 7.3 percent. This has kept the national poverty rate at about 40 percent. There is also a deficit in formal job creation, and aggressive fiscal policies to meet revenue targets have heavily strained average household budgets. It is not too gloomy for the government because there is still time. Nine months is long enough to turn things around before the August 8 General Election. It is also long enough for Kenyans to decide what they will do with their votes.
