Deputy President William Ruto's second-born daughter, Charlene Ruto, on Sunday, April 10, made a public appearance on a campaign trail in Kasarani constituency alongside United Democratic Alliance (UDA) aspirant, Mike Sagana.
Charlene, who keeps her life away from the limelight, toured the Kasarani constituency, throwing her weight behind Sagana as the most preferred candidate for the parliamentary seat ahead of the nominations slated for Thursday, April 14.
After attending a service at AIC Kasarani church, the duo traversed various wards including Mwiki, Njiru and Ruai. They later visited the party's office based in Ruai.
"Earlier on Sunday, I attended a church service at the AIC Kasarani church. Together with my good friend Charlene Ruto we preached for peace during this election. We thank the church elders for praying for us. AIC, Kasarani ward."
"Later on in the day, we traversed the whole constituency from Kasarani to Claycity to Mwiki to Njiru and finally the great Ruai ward. We visited the UDA Kamulu office in Ruai ward. It was a humbling experience," Sagana stated.
Sagana is seeking to beat former legislator John Njoroge Chege in the primaries. Other leaders who have thrown their hats in the ring include Nairobi lawyer Boniface Nyamu, SportPesa Chief Executive Officer Ronald Karauri, businessman Peter Mwangi Mbugua, and incumbent Mercy Gakuya.
This marks the first time that Charlene has publicly shown her allegiance to a particular aspirant. The media-shy protege serves as a director at her father's famed Weston Hotel. Charlene, a Public Relations specialist, is also in charge of branding at the Lang'ata-based controversial hotel.
It is not often that you find relatives of political leaders declaring their stance on their preferred candidate ahead of the nominations.
Recently, Azimio la Umoja Presidential flag-bearer Raila Odinga's wife, Ida Odinga, publicly endorsed Homa Bay Woman Representative Gladys Wanga for the gubernatorial seat. She was later handed a direct party ticket.
In another rally, Ida also endorsed Westlands MP Tim Wanyonyi for the Nairobi governorship on an ODM ticket.
