Who Is Running for Samburu Governor in 2027?

Jonathan Lati Lelelit (Governor, Samburu) was elected on the United Democratic Alliance (UDA) ticket in 2022 and is in his first term, so he can run again on 10 August 2027. His main reported challenger is Jackson Lekumontare (Samburu East). A Timely Kenya telephone poll taken between 25 June and 1 July 2026 had Lekumontare ahead county-wide by 55 per cent to 45.

The seat and the 2022 result

Samburu has three constituencies: Samburu West, Samburu North and Samburu East.

UDA also took the Senate seat that year. The winning governor's total, a little over 40,000 votes, shows how few votes can decide a county here. Ward-level results matter even more, a point made in a ward by-election in Samburu.

Lekumontare's challenge

Local news pages in Samburu have carried Lekumontare saying he is running for governor, and Timely Kenya tested him against Lelelit as the county's main contest. Its four-county study of Samburu, Meru, Embu and Isiolo, published on 1 July 2026, surveyed 1,211 respondents by phone, with quotas set against 2019 census figures, and gave a margin of error of 1.9 per cent. In Samburu, Lekumontare led 55 to 45 across the county, though Lelelit came out ahead in Samburu West.

Two cautions. The 1,211 interviews covered all four counties, so the Samburu sample was a fraction of that and its real margin of error is wider than the headline figure. And the poll was a two-way test; it does not tell you how a larger field would split. The questions worth asking of any such figure are in how to read an opinion poll.

Lekumontare's party for the governor race had not been reported by 23 September 2026.

Lelelit and the Senate

Lelelit spent much of early 2026 in a fight with the Senate. Its County Public Accounts Committee summoned him repeatedly over audit queries, and in March People Daily reported missing records and absent officials at one of its hearings on Samburu.

On 1 April 2026, Senate Speaker Amason Kingi ordered his arrest and escort to the Parliament Police Station after he was seen in Parliament Buildings despite an active warrant for failing to appear, the Eastleigh Voice reported. A physical confrontation followed between the governor and several senators. The Council of Governors condemned what it called an assault on him, and Lelelit later accused some senators of extortion, KBC reported, in an allegation no court has tested. The wider clash is covered in the Council of Governors is fighting the Senate.

Residents of Archer's Post marched in his support on 4 April, KBC reported. By mid-May the governors had agreed to resume appearing before Senate committees, The Standard reported.

On policy, Lelelit has pushed for a 50-year framework for the Equalisation Fund to close the development gap in pastoralist counties, Citizen Digital reported on 14 September 2026.

Where Samburu sits nationally

The Star counted Samburu on 13 September 2026 among ten "forgotten" counties that together held more than 1.8 million voters on the 2022 register and could matter under the 24-county rule for presidential candidates. Its neighbour to the west has an open race; see who is running for West Pokot governor.

Lelelit sits on the government side, as a UDA governor backing President William Ruto. Naisula Lesuuda (Samburu West) broke with the opposition to back Ruto in early September 2026, People Daily reported.

What to watch

The UDA ticket is the first question. If both Lelelit and Lekumontare seek it, the party primary, due to be concluded by about 8 May 2027, is where the race could be settled. If one of them runs on another party, the July poll suggests a close general election. Samburu's Senate race, which Timely Kenya found to be a four-way tie, will also shape which camp controls the county's votes.