Homa Bay Town Member of Parliament Peter Kaluma has insisted that the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) will only enter into future political coalitions with parties that respect its traditional strongholds, saying the arrangement is necessary to safeguard the party’s influence and interests.

In a statement posted on his X account on April 6, 2026, the Homa Bay County ODM chairman argued that political parties around the world naturally develop regional bases of support, noting that such structures are common in established democracies.

“All political parties have their strongholds and bases in mature democracies. In the United States, we have Red States and Blue States with a few swing states.

So is the case with Europe where we’ve distinct Labour and Conservative Party strongholds,” Kaluma said.

He noted that the same trend exists across Africa and has also been evident in Kenya’s coalition politics over the years.

According to Kaluma, even in previous alliances such as Coalition for Reforms and Democracy (CORD) in 2013, National Super Alliance (NASA) in 2017, and Azimio la Umoja–One Kenya Coalition Party in 2022, each party maintained its own areas of influence despite forming a united front during elections.

“In 2013, although the ODM Party, Ford Kenya, Wiper and other parties formed the CORD Coalition, each party had their distinct regions of influence,” he said.

Kaluma explained that coalitions often field a single candidate in each electoral unit, usually from the most dominant party in that region, to maximize their chances of securing parliamentary seats. He argued that winning the presidency alone is not enough for a coalition to effectively run the government without strong representation in Parliament.

“A coalition which wins an election but with few MPs can’t have its Cabinet and State Officers approved, cannot have budget and will risk having its President, Deputy President, Governors, Ministers and State Officers impeached or removed from office,” he said.

The legislator emphasized that ODM will not compromise on its political bases when negotiating future alliances.

“Our coalition partner(s) have to keep off our strongholds before and after elections. This is non-negotiable,” Kaluma stated.

He also maintained that ODM intends to field a presidential candidate in all future elections, regardless of whether it runs alone or as part of a coalition.

“For the avoidance of doubt, the ODM Party will have its presidential candidate in all future elections — whether in coalition with other parties or alone,” he said.

Kaluma further revealed that veteran politician Oburu Oginga is currently the party’s presidential candidate.

“Dr. Oburu Oginga is the ODM Party Presidential Candidate now,” he said.