The Office of the Registrar of Political Parties (ORPP) has confirmed that five political parties have officially exited the Azimio la Umoja coalition following the 2022 General Election.
According to an updated list released on Wednesday, the parties severed ties with Azimio between February 2023 and December 2024. The parties include the People’s Liberation Party (formerly Narc Kenya), Maendeleo Chap Chap, United Democratic Movement (UDM), Devolution Empowerment Party, and Pamoja African Alliance (PAA).
The development follows a High Court ruling that directed the ORPP to make public the status of political parties after a petition was filed by concerned citizens.
The court ruling also declared Azimio la Umoja One Kenya Alliance as the legitimate majority alliance in the National Assembly. A three-judge bench, comprising Justices John Chigiti, Jairus Ngaah, and Lawrence Mugambi, faulted Speaker Moses Wetang’ula’s decision to reassign 14 MPs who resigned from Azimio to Kenya Kwanza. The affected MPs were from UDM, Movement for Democracy and Growth (MDG), Maendeleo Chap Chap, and PAA.
Despite the ruling, the ORPP’s latest notice indicates that these four parties, along with others that exited Azimio, are not currently affiliated with any coalition, though they have working arrangements with Kenya Kwanza. The registrar also listed 47 political parties with no coalition affiliation or representation in the National Assembly.
The battle over the majority party in Parliament continued on February 12, when Speaker Wetang’ula ruled that Kenya Kwanza remains the majority party. His ruling came amid a standoff after Azimio MPs occupied seats designated for the majority side, expecting the court’s decision to take effect.
Wetang’ula confirmed that Azimio holds 154 seats while Kenya Kwanza has 165, reaffirming the latter’s majority status.
“Arising from the foregoing, Kenya Kwanza is the majority and Azimio is the minority. The leadership of the House remains unchanged,” Wetang’ula stated, adding that the court had not declared any party as the majority or minority.
