William Ruto became Kenya's fifth president in September 2022 following a tight race against Raila Odinga, who had enjoyed the backing of outgoing president Uhuru Kenyatta. We look back on five years of intrigue, negotiations and last-minute about-turns, which ended in a merciless showdown between the two candidates.
Financiers working for former president Uhuru Kenyatta and his pick of presidential candidate Raila Odinga have since turned to William Ruto in the hopes of protecting their business empires and are willing to pour cash into the new head of state's key projects.
The new Kenyan president's administration is having trouble finding enough experts to put his programme into action but also needs to meet the demands of his political allies.
As he awaits confirmation of his presidential election victory, William Ruto is under pressure from some of his MPs to take a tough stance on corruption. This is an awkward subject for a number of his associates.
Despite Kenyatta's calls to vote for Odinga, the incumbent's Kikuyu community voted overwhelmingly for Deputy President William Ruto. The result is a political reshaping in Kenya's fertile and populous heartland.
The new US ambassador to Kenya is playing a leading role in easing the tension following William Ruto's victory in this month's presidential election, and the visit of an American senator could be a key move for bringing about political reconciliation.
Although the election of incumbent deputy president William Ruto as head of state has yet to be confirmed following his opponent's appeal to the Supreme Court, his allies have begun talks to become part of the future government.
As its debts continue to mount up, the Kenyan government is finding it increasingly difficult to find sources of finance, even from the private sector. Kenyatta's successor, William Ruto, is preparing to take over the reins of a state with very little room for manoeuvre.
The leaders of Kenya's main Christian churches called on the two leading presidential candidates to meet and commit to a peaceful election. They have declined the invitation.
With less than two weeks to go until the general election, and in the face of public indignation, the Kenyan government has postponed plans to entrust the management of the country's main ports to the Dubai-based company.
The two main presidential candidates are struggling to meet the demands of their many allies and lieutenants for future government jobs - a crisis that has blown up just two weeks before the general election.
With just three weeks to go before Kenya's general election, the Mombasa governor's stranglehold on trade between South Sudan and Kenya is irking companies in both countries.
President Uhuru Kenyatta and his ministers have issued an unprecedented series of executive orders to renew the Kenyan administration for the coming years. It's a way to continue influencing the next term, in which the outgoing head of state won't be able to take part directly.
The president and his nemesis-cum-deputy support rival candidates for the capital's governorship. The outcome of this battle will have long-lasting repercussions.
The government is increasing subsidies to cushion tea producers from the current economic turbulence. The tea sector is vital to the economy and a key source of votes, which the presidential camp and its allies cannot afford to do without.
Keenly aware that he is not a favourite in Mogadishu, Odinga has recently been bending over backwards to come up with proposals to restore bilateral relations with Somalia. Much to the concern of the security services, which are on high alert in the run-up to the Kenyan elections.
To carry out his international and commercial agenda, presidential candidate Odinga is planning to overhaul the Kenyan diplomatic apparatus. Yet this is a domain in which his scope for manoeuvre is limited while the outgoing president is still in the picture.
Deputy President William Ruto's campaign team is exasperated by the failure of his running mate, Rigathi Gachagua, to toe the official line. Communications advisers in the Kenya Kwanza coalition have had to deal with a string of polemics sparked by Gachagua's speeches and by comments on social media by some of Ruto's more vocal allies.
The company, whose boss backs the deputy president's bid to succeed Uhuru Kenyatta, owes crippling sums to the Treasury, and management is refusing to sell shares to settle its debts.
After the electoral commission disqualified the multi-millionaire head of the Kwacha Group from the presidential race, the two front-runners, Raila Odinga and William Ruto, are both hoping he will back their campaign.
Kenya's top clerics are key pieces on the political chessboard as the country heads for the polls. Both presidential front-runners, are desperate to win the large Pentecostal vote. We delve behind-the-scenes of political preaching and fundraising to explore the role of religion in the campaign.
Kenyan Deputy President William Ruto has launched a charm offensive among the children of former president Daniel arap Moi, who died in 2020. Some appear to be already on his side.
With general elections on the horizon, top officials in Kenya are failing to see eye-to-eye over the fate of a large number of candidates accused of corruption. Outgoing president Uhuru Kenyatta, who has been asked to mediate, risks seeing his send-off marred by a major scandal.
In the run-up to the general election, rival polling institutes and media outlets are churning out figures and predictions that are sometimes at odds with each other. These statistics are being scrutinised closely by the political parties to inform their campaign choices.
Outgoing Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta has rolled out access to his media empire to support his protégé Raila Odinga for president. His main opponent, deputy president William Ruto, is turning to social media as a result.
There was a big turnout of allies of the Kenyan president in Kisumu, the country's third largest city, for the pan-African Africities summit. It was one of his last opportunities to score a diplomatic success before the end of his second and final term, as well as a chance to exert his influence on the imminent presidential election.
Kisumu, Kenya's third biggest city and the electoral base of presidential candidate Raila Odinga, is to receive financial support from the African Development Bank for its urban renovation plans. Meanwhile, Kisumu County is benefiting from a growing number of new development projects.
The vice-president, at daggers drawn with his former ally, is defying the outgoing head of state by threatening to reverse some of his flagship measures. His bravado has divided his own campaign team.
Despite having the support of the incumbent leader, presidential hopeful Raila Odinga is facing mistrust in the all-important central Kenya region, where his main rival William Ruto is proving to be much more popular.
Kenyan presidential candidate Raila Odinga, who is in trouble with his coalition, is making an increasing number of appearances with his allies at sporting events.
The speaker of the national assembly abandoned the presidential camp and joined Ruto in April. He now wants nothing less than the deputy president's seat in return for playing a pivotal role in rallying the centre of the country.
State House is following with great interest the battle for the governorship of Nakuru, the fourth largest city in the country. Located at a strategic crossroads, the county of which it is the capital is one of the Kenyatta bastions that is in danger of falling into the hands of his deputy president.
The Kenyatta-Odinga duo's closest allies blame the president for being too exclusive in his latest selection of ambassadors and high-level diplomats. Most of the newly appointed come from within the Orange Democratic Movement or Jubilee Party.
The outgoing Kenyan president wants to influence the choice of Raila Odinga's running mate in upcoming elections, even if it means accentuating the tensions within their coalition. The decision must be taken before 28 April.
In re-establishing the iconic Tea Board of Kenya, the Kenyan president hopes to regain control of the country's tea sector, Nairobi's primary source of export revenue.
Two rival camps of the President's close aides are vying for the vacant seats held by advisers who have left to campaign. The one left by Uhuru Kenyatta's chief of staff, Nzioka Waita, is generating a lot of interest.
With the threat of another post-election crisis looming, the government is taking steps to secure the most volatile areas across the country where clashes between supporters of rival candidates could erupt.
The two main presidential candidates are counting on the backing of popular singers and celebrities to cement their popularity. Certain stars are not shy in asking for strategic positions in the future government in return.
The presidential candidate is facing pressure from Mombasa County's business leaders, who want assurances that one of them will become a governor there, putting Odinga, who wants to avoid having to choose between long-time political and financial supporters, in a bind.
The long court case over President Uhuru Kenyatta's proposed constitutional review has ended, meaning presidential candidate Raila Odinga's plans for a grand coalition have been endangered.
The Treasury has chosen a team of six people to steer the sensitive and neglected task of privatising public enterprises, particularly in the sugar sector, which is set to be a hot topic for whoever heads the next administration.
Back in Kenya after a week in the UK, presidential candidate Raila Odinga has been giving attention to his foreign policy credentials. To attract the favours of the West, he has highlighted Kenya's role as a peacemaker in the Horn of Africa, a region riven by civil wars and political crises.
Kenya's head of state has made a raft of appointments to public bodies that will play an important role in the remaining few months of a very tight succession battle.
With presidential and general elections on the horizon, Kenya's anti-graft agency has forwarded allegations of conflict of interest and embezzlement against some of the deputy president's closest aides to the state prosecutor.
The Kenyan president's right-hand man, Nzioka Waita, is hoping to get himself elected as governor of a strategic county near Nairobi. He knows he needs a major image makeover to convince voters and beat off the competition.
The Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta fears that the country's appeal to investors will decline in the run-up to what is expected to be a hotly disputed election. He has instructed his teams to promote a new eurobond in the world's leading financial marketplaces.
The deputy president's remaining allies in the government have resigned in order to reach out to the grass roots and help finance his election campaign. Now that they have nothing left to lose, they are preparing a concerted offensive against the Kenyan leader.
As the two top presidential candidates, deputy president William Ruto and Raila Odinga - now backed by his former rival President Uhuru Kenyatta - ramp up their campaigns, a tug-of-war is emerging behind the scenes between newcomers wanting to make their mark and long-standing advisers.
The Law Society of Kenya, which has been divided for the past two years, is to gain new leadership. Its role will be decisive for the judiciary during the August general election and then during the term of the next Kenyan president.
A possible presidential election win for the president's arch-rival, Deputy President William Ruto, could have serious consequences for the Kenyatta family's fortunes. To stave off such a prospect, all of its members are getting involved in politics for the first time.
In preparation for what is expected to be a tense election campaign, International Criminal Court prosecutor Karim Khan has dispatched a legal team to Nairobi to gather potential proof of election violence.
As ministers keen to get on the campaign trail pressure him to reshuffle his government, the president has yet to find a team that will provide continuity between his administration and the next one, which he hopes will be led by Raila Odinga.
The deputy president is trying to get State House to stop what he decries as the harrassment to which his foreign financial backers are being subjected.
It is shaping up to be a bruising year for Wafula Chebukati, whose job it is to ensure a free and fair general election in August after an extremely long and divisive campaign. The Electoral Commission head is already in the sights of the frontrunners, namely Deputy President William Ruto and Uhuru Kenyatta's favoured successor, Raila Odinga.
The presidential candidate, snubbed by Washington, is hoping to gain international stature by securing the support of the continent's heavyweights. Uhuru Kenyatta is backing his approaches to foreign embassies.
By extending support to Uhuru Kenyatta's preferred presidential candidate, the oligarchs of the powerful Mount Kenya Foundation fear they will be dragged into funding his entire campaign.
The president of the Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry is actively campaigning on behalf of Uhuru Kenyatta, but he is also - much more discreetly - partnering his sister Nyokabi Kenyatta on a number of government contracts.
Uhuru Kenyatta, who has campaigned for Raila Odinga in the Mount Kenya region, is currently galvanising his political and financial network in the Rift Valley on behalf of his protégé.
Andrew Ngirici, whose media group includes Mt Kenya TV and Iganjo FM, is yet to decide who to back in the long run in Kenya's election. In return for his support, he wants his wife to be governor of Kirinyaga County.
As the 2022 presidential election race hots up, the insurance company Amaco, the heart of opposition candidate William Ruto's business empire, is being targeted by a myriad of claims from the local and central authorities.
Delighted to secure the valuable political and financial backing of the magnates of the Mount Kenya Foundation, Raila Odinga has ceded decision-making powers to them, but this has not gone down well with his campaign team.
Ready to do anything to stem William Ruto's breakthrough in the key Mount Kenya voting bloc, Raila Odinga has thrown his support behind another politician, current health minister Mutahi Kagwe.
Gideon Moi, the chief presidential campaign backer of Uhuru Kenyatta's protégé Raila Odinga, has deployed his sidekick Nick Salat to sound out potential members of the government that will run the country until next August's elections.
Uhuru Kenyatta wants to keep a handle on the Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry for as long as possible so he can garner support for his heir apparent Raila Odinga.
Public prosecutor Noordin Haji, who is the key figure in Uhuru Kenyatta's high-cost anti-graft drive, is refusing to deal with cases sent to him by the anticorruption commission, headed by Twalib Mbarak, that involve politicians.
Governors in Uhuru Kenyatta's Mount Kenya stronghold have spoken out against his support for Raila Odinga's candidacy in next year's election. The president is reeling as a result.
The number two in the foreign office, Ababu Namwamba, is set to be the latest casualty in President Uhuru Kenyatta's war with Deputy President William Ruto.
Kenya's political class is holding its breath as it waits for business magnate Jimmy Wanjigi to make a definitive stand on next year's general election. The tycoon first pledged his support to Musalia Mudavadi, before announcing his own candidacy and then approaching front runner William Ruto.
The constitutional referendum supported by the president and his nemesis-turned-protégé was blocked by the High Court. Their legal counsel do not believe that they will be able to prevail in the Court of Appeal.
Uhuru Kenyatta has been meeting in his State House offices with minor candidates to try to persuade them to rally behind Raila Odinga, the would-be successor he has not yet officially endorsed.
The main contenders in next year's presidential race, William Ruto and Raila Odinga, have launched an all-out charm offensive to find the best partner to rally reticent communities to their side.
While Kenyatta favourite Raila Odinga reaches out to the opposition, Musalia Mudavadi and Mukhisa Kituyi have called on their sponsors to support their bid in State House to be designated as the president's new candidate.
Vice president William Ruto has mustered his troops in parliament to fight against the head of state's plans to issue a new eurobond. The bond, the proceeds of which are to be used to reimburse the Kenyatta administration's debts, is contested even in the president's own camp.
Kenya's central bank is wrapping up an investigation into facilities former treasury minister Henry Rotich extended to businessman Jared Kangwana. Rotich, who was sacked in July 2019, is also on trial over another affair.
Nairobi's internal security, police and anti-corruption services are sifting through the finances of Deputy President William Ruto, who is intending to run in the next presidential election against Raila Odinga, a former rival turned ally of Kenyatta.
Kenya's intelligence chief Philip Kameru has joined several of Uhuru Kenyatta's other advisors in urging him to distance himself from his supposed ally Raila Odinga.
To resume his presidential campaign, Raila Odinga's closest advisors are urging him to put an end to his alliance with President Uhuru Kenyatta.
After putting on the charm to rally Kenyatta clan buddies to his presidential cause, deputy president William Ruto is now trying to win over the Kalenjin businessmen that had offered their unwavering support to former president Daniel arap Moi.
Deputy President William Ruto and his boss Uhuru Kenyatta held talks last month to find a compromise on the constitutional referendum backed by the president. Since then, Ruto has become persona non grata at State House again.
Deputy president William Ruto has turned to the businessmen of Central Kenya, who generally back President Uhuru Kenyatta, to raise funds for his election campaign.
Kenyatta's main financial advisers and treasury secretary Ukur Yatani Kanacho reckon the state cannot bear the cost of his and Raila Odinga's constitutional referendum.
Behind the scenes, President Uhuru Kenyatta is having to prepare himself for the departure of Kinuthia Mbugua, one of his most valued advisors who is also the State House comptroller. He is fearful that this will trigger a mass exodus as his term in office draws to a close and his allies gear up for the post-Kenyatta era.
Kenyatta's candidate for the 2022 presidential elections has been losing his backers one by one as turn to support his rival, Deputy President William Ruto.
Uhuru Kenyatta's unofficial successor Raila Odinga has been weakened by the very public dissension of his son and his political adversaries are seeking to exploit the situation.
After three years in the political wilderness, the Kwacha Group chief has returned to the limelight as Uhuru Kenyatta and Raila Odinga's go-between.
Behind Raila Odinga's flurry of attacks on President Uhuru Kenyatta lies a row over the constitutional referendum calendar.
With the encouragement of health secretary Mutahi Kagwe, the Kikuyu Council of Elders is setting up a party to champion the constitutional referendum of Kenyatta and Odinga.
Deputy President William Ruto's communication plan for Mediamax has one major problem: President Uhuru Kenyatta is refusing to sell his shares
Plans being laid by bigwigs in Uhuru Kenyatta's Jubilee Party for the 2022 presidential elections are endangering the alliance which the Kenyan president is patiently building with his rival Raila Odinga.
President Uhuru Kenyatta and his former arch-rival Raila Odinga have garnered enough parliamentary support to avoid a protracted and costly vote on the Building Bridges Initiative, whose amicable name hides a determination to get rid of Deputy President William Ruto.
Kenyan head of state Uhuru Kenyatta has ordered vice president William Ruto to end his campaign against planned changes to the Jubilee Party's management committee.
On 28 February, the ex-senator for Nyeri County, Mutahi Kagwe, took over the reins of the Ministry of Health and
The ex-opposition leader Raila Odinga, who is now on good terms with President Uhuru Kenyatta, is waiting for the right
President Uhuru Kenyatta has no intention of dialling down his campaign to promote the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI). This despite
Raphael Tuju, the secretary-general of President Uhuru Kenyatta's Jubilee Party,
The Star daily newspaper, seen as a campaigning vehicle for the 2022 presidential election, is on sale and coveted by both Kenyatta's entourage and his potential successor William Ruto.
The deputy president William Ruto is still searching for that
The Building Bridges Initiative (BBI), set-up after the handshake on
The politically prominent Turkana County governor, Josphat Nanok, is working on building his national standing. The long-term rival of Kenyan
On two separate occasions, he has found an excuse not
After the wave of arrests over the summer, the advisors of president and his main adversary are sounding the alarm bells.
