Kenya's seven women governors have opened a new front in the long fight over the two-thirds gender rule. They plan to lobby individual MPs and the leaders of every party in Parliament to pass two pending constitutional amendment bills before the 2027 General Election.

The governors, who sit together as the Council of Governors Women Caucus or G7, announced the strategy at a forum in Nairobi on Tuesday, October 13. The Daily Nation reported on Sunday that the caucus is now building a cross-party coalition to carry the bills through both Houses.

Two bills on the table

The first is the Constitution of Kenya (Amendment) Bill, 2025, National Assembly Bill No. 29. Its sponsors are Deputy Speaker Gladys Boss Shollei and MPs Beatrice Elachi and Jane Kihara. It would amend Article 97 to create special seats so that no more than two-thirds of members elected from constituencies are of the same gender. The number of top-up seats would be set only after election results are declared.

The second is the Constitution of Kenya (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill, 2025, Senate Bill No. 16, sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Aaron Cheruiyot. It proposes formulas to meet the gender principle and more transparent party nomination lists. It also reserves at least five per cent of seats in both Houses for persons with disabilities.

More than 11 earlier attempts to legislate the rule have failed since the 2010 Constitution was promulgated, the Nation noted. Some collapsed for lack of quorum in a House dominated by men.

"Not a favour"

Kirinyaga Governor Anne Waiguru, who co-leads the caucus, called the stalemate a collective failure. She urged all political formations to back the bills.

The bills, she said, are "not a favour to women but fulfilling unfinished constitutional business," the Nation reported.

She said gender balance should not be left to women lawmakers alone. "I believe that if we had more women in government, the government would do a lot better," she said, The Star reported.

The forum also produced a political headline. Waiguru said she would be interested in deputising President William Ruto if the chance arose in 2027. She also announced plans to run for president in 2032, after her term as governor ends.

Mentorship and money

Homa Bay Governor and ODM chairperson Gladys Wanga recalled that when she was an MP, many colleagues failed to turn up to vote for an earlier gender bill.

She challenged senior women to spend more time mentoring aspirants. "We haven't created enough time to walk the journey with our sisters who are coming up, to mentor them, to hold their hands," she said, The Star reported.

Wanga called for a national, cross-party plan to support women candidates, especially those who cannot afford competitive campaigns. She proposed fundraising for grassroots meetings and urged parties to consider women as running mates in 2027.

Nairobi Woman Representative Esther Passaris went further, calling for the presidency to rotate. She said she wanted Wanga to be president in 2032.

Allies in Parliament

The G7 is working with the Kenya Women Parliamentary Association and the Kenya Women Senators Association, the Nation reported. Part of the aim is to make sure party lists submitted to the IEBC comply with the rule and that parties publish their nomination rules.

Nominated Senator Veronica Maina called the bills good news but said a clear matrix was needed to implement the rule. Secretary to the Cabinet Mercy Wanjau said she was optimistic the rule would be realised in "our lifetime".

The forum closed with a joint communique read by Council of Governors CEO Mary Mwiti.

The task ahead is steep. Only 201 women were elected to Kenya's 1,882 elective seats in 2022, The Star reported, citing UN Women.

Photos: Governors Anne Waiguru and Gladys Wanga at the G7 forum in Nairobi, Alice Waithera/The Star; Parliament Buildings, Nairobi, Jorge Láscar/Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0).