How to Brief a Campaign Spokesperson

Before every interview, give a campaign spokesperson four things: the facts as they stand, the two or three lines you want repeated, what they must neither confirm nor deny, and the name of whoever can approve anything new. Put it on one dated page and update it the moment the facts change. A spokesperson left to guess ends up either saying too little and sounding evasive, or saying too much and starting the next story.

Why the brief matters

Kenya's party spokespeople were busy in August and September 2026, and every word was read closely. On 20 August 2026 the Star reported a "revolt" over an alleged pact to make Kalonzo Musyoka the opposition flag-bearer. Ndegwa Njiru, the Wiper Patriotic Front spokesman, denied an "exclusive" deal between Kalonzo and Rigathi Gachagua. He did not deny that a pact was being worked on, and reporters noticed. A denial that precise is only possible when the spokesperson knows exactly what is true and what is not.

The Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) had a different problem when party leader Oburu Oginga (Senator, Siaya) travelled to the UK. On 6 September 2026 party official Philip Etale confirmed the trip was for a medical check-up, People Daily reported. That one short confirmation settled a question rumour would otherwise have answered.

The one-page brief

Write the brief in the language of the interview. A line that works in English may fall apart when translated live on a vernacular station; see how to handle vernacular radio.

When the candidate says something wrong

Cleaning up after the principal is the hardest part of the job. Around 12 September 2026, UDA Secretary-General Hassan Omar told a Mombasa rally: "Even if someone has died, we should take their fingerprint before they are buried." On 15 September he said the remark was a metaphor.

By then ODM's Mombasa branch had demanded action, the government spokesperson had asked the IEBC to act, and opposition leaders had seized on the remark to demand an audit of the voter register.

For a smaller campaign the answer is to agree the clarification within hours and have the candidate say it in person. When a spokesperson explains what the candidate "really meant", the story rarely ends there.

When a fake is circulating

A fake calls for a different brief. Say it is fake, show why, and point people to the real channel. When a fake seat-sharing document went round in September 2026, UDA's communications director Nathaniel Mong'are told PesaCheck: "It's fake. It is not a document that has been sanctioned by the party." Our playbook on responding to a viral fake covers the steps.

Rules for the spokesperson

1. Never guess a date. "No date has been set" is a complete answer.
2. Never attack an opponent's community. Ethnic contempt is an offence wherever it is spoken; see ethnic contempt as an election offence.
3. It is fine to say "I will check and come back", as long as they do come back the same day.
4. Log every interview with the outlet, date, questions and what was said.
5. Anything outside the brief goes to the sign-off person.

Where the spokesperson sits

The spokesperson reports to the campaign manager and works from the campaign's nerve centre. Running statements off the candidate's own phone is how contradictions start. See what a campaign nerve centre does and the four roles a constituency campaign needs.

Formal campaigning opens on 29 May 2027. Someone hired that week has no time to learn the brief, so appoint a spokesperson early and train them on the facts.