Former Starehe MP says she will run on Kenya Moja ticket, promises to clean up City Hall
Bishop Margaret Wanjiru is back in Nairobi’s bruising gubernatorial contest.
The founder of Jesus Is Alive Ministries (JIAM) today announced that she will vie for the Nairobi Governor seat in the 2027 General Election on a Kenya Moja Movement Party ticket.
Speaking in Nairobi after consultations with supporters and party officials, the former legislator said her decision was informed by what she termed as a need for honest, accountable and inclusive leadership in the capital.
“I, Bishop Margaret Wanjiru, declare that I will contest for the position of Nairobi Governor on a Kenya Moja Movement Party ticket,” she said.
She is campaigning under the slogan “Nairobi Mpya” – New Nairobi.
The announcement, first reported by http://Kenyans.co.ke, puts her among the early entrants in a race that is expected to attract several heavyweights, including incumbent Governor Johnson Sakaja.
Wanjiru, 64, brings nearly two decades of experience in both ministry and elective politics. She first entered Parliament in 2007 when she won the Starehe Constituency seat on an Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) ticket, defeating veteran politician Maina Kamanda.
Her victory at the time was considered a major upset. A single mother, self-made businesswoman and televangelist of Kikuyu origin running on a predominantly Luo-supported ODM party in the aftermath of post-election tensions, her candidature defied conventional ethnic political arithmetic.
She would go on to serve as Assistant Minister for Housing between 2010 and 2013 in the Grand Coalition Government. c50f
The Starehe Legacy: ‘Mama na Kazi’
It is her tenure in Starehe (2007-2013) that still forms the core of her political CV, and which her supporters cite as proof of delivery.
Wanjiru earned the nickname ‘Mama na Kazi’ – the hardworking woman – in the densely populated constituency that encompasses parts of Nairobi Central, Ziwani, Kariokor, City Stadium and informal settlements.
Residents and parliamentary records point to three areas where she focused:
- Housing and sanitation: As Assistant Minister for Housing, she leveraged her docket to address Starehe’s chronic sanitation crisis. She pushed for upgrading projects and construction of sanitation blocks in informal settlements where residents previously lacked toilets and bathrooms. “I enjoy working there because housing is a major problem in Nairobi and my constituency in particular,” she said in an interview at the time. 61b4
- Youth and education: She was known for bursary distribution and youth empowerment programmes. During the hotly contested Starehe by-election of September 20, 2010 – called after a vote recount petition by Maina Kamanda – she campaigned heavily on youth jobs. “Mimi ni mama wa vijana. Sitawaacha kamwe,” she told rallies, a message that helped her retain the seat with 29,287 votes against Kamanda’s 25,416. 61b4
- Accessibility: Unlike many MPs, she ran a near open-door constituency office and used her church infrastructure along Haile Selassie Avenue as a community contact point.
Her critics, however, argued that her dual role as bishop and MP blurred the line between church and state, with her 2007 campaign being famously anointed at a Christmas Day service where she said she was “taking this seat for Jesus”.
A long, winding political road
After leaving Parliament in 2013, Wanjiru’s political journey has been one of persistence through setbacks.
In 2013, she was barred from contesting the Nairobi Governor seat after the Commission for University Education declined to recognise her Doctor of Theology degree from Vineyard Harvester Bible College.
She ran for Nairobi Governor again in 2017 and lost. In 2022, she stepped down from the Governor race in favour of Johnson Sakaja under the Kenya Kwanza coalition arrangement and instead vied for Nairobi Senator on a UDA ticket, losing to ODM’s Edwin Sifuna.
In October 2024, President William Ruto appointed her Chairperson of the Nairobi Rivers Commission, a taskforce mandated to reclaim and rehabilitate Nairobi’s rivers. On August 31, 2026, she tendered a 30-day resignation from the Commission to focus on politics, a move that paved the way for today’s announcement. eefe
She now leads the Kenya Moja Movement Party, a vehicle she says is anchored on unity and good governance.
What she is promising Nairobi
In her manifesto highlights released today, Wanjiru said Nairobi deserves leadership that serves with honesty and vision.
Her key pledges include:
- Improved garbage collection and solid waste management
- Reliable water supply and rehabilitation of roads and drainage
- Revitalization of county health facilities and consistent drug supply
- A business-friendly environment to create jobs and attract investment
- Zero tolerance to corruption and prudent use of county resources 562b
She also emphasised inclusive leadership, stating that Nairobi’s diversity should be treated as a strength where residents from different communities, religions and backgrounds receive equal treatment.
The road to 2027
Analysts say Wanjiru’s candidacy adds an interesting dynamic to the Nairobi race. She enjoys name recognition, a loyal church base that cuts across estates, and sympathy among women and youth voters.
However, she faces significant hurdles. Nairobi’s electorate has become increasingly issue-based and youthful, demanding detailed plans on housing, transport, unemployment and climate resilience, beyond general promises. Her past party-hopping – from ODM to Jubilee to UDA and now Kenya Moja – may also be used by opponents to question consistency.
Moreover, the question of academic qualifications that dogged her 2013 bid and her loss in two subsequent major elections will likely resurface.
For now, the Bishop who rose from working as a house-help, hawker and toilet cleaner in Nairobi to become one of the city’s most recognizable televangelists and politicians, says she is ready for one more shot.
Whether Nairobians will embrace her “Nairobi Mpya” message remains to be seen, but one thing is certain – the 2027 governor contest has just become more crowded.