President William Ruto has ordered the police and other security agencies to pursue the people who finance, recruit and organise political violence, warning that those behind hired gangs must not escape responsibility as the country heads towards the 2027 General Election.
Ruto said security agencies must look beyond young people deployed to cause disruption and investigate the individuals who recruit, transport and pay them.
Speaking on Friday, August 28, 2026, during a passing-out parade for newly trained police officers at the National Police College in Kiganjo, Nyeri County, the President said politically sponsored violence posed a threat to Kenya’s democratic process. The event was attended by senior security officials as the country prepares for the August 10, 2027 election.
“In recent months, we have witnessed growing concern about hired gangs and young people recruited, transported and paid to disrupt political meetings, intimidate political opponents and provoke violence,” Ruto said.
“Let me be absolutely clear on this. Politically sponsored violence has no place in our democracy.”
His strongest warning was directed at the alleged political financiers and organisers behind such groups, rather than only the youths who may be found carrying weapons or taking part in attacks.
“Do not arrest only the young people holding a weapon while allowing a person who recruited, transported and paid them to escape responsibility,” he said.
The remarks put political sponsors of violence at the centre of the President’s security message ahead of the 2027 Kenya election, signalling that responsibility for politically motivated violence should extend beyond those who carry it out.
Ruto directed the National Police Service and other security agencies to take “firm, lawful, and impartial” action against anyone who finances, organises, incites or perpetrates political violence.
Ruto warns politicians against private militias
The President also warned political leaders against maintaining or using private militias to advance their interests, intimidate rivals or disrupt political meetings.
“No candidate has the right to intimidate citizens. No political objective can justify violence,” Ruto said.
He said political parties should remain free to organise meetings and campaign across the country, but political competition must operate within the law.
“Political competition is an essential feature of our democracy. Parties are at liberty to organise,” he said.
Ruto’s comments come as political activity begins to intensify ahead of the 2027 presidential and parliamentary elections. His warning places particular emphasis on the conduct of political campaigns and the role of security agencies in protecting both candidates and ordinary citizens.
The President said Kenyans should be able to participate in political activities without fear, including attending rallies, questioning leaders and criticising political positions.
“Candidates must be free to campaign. Citizens must be free to assemble, listen, question, criticise and choose,” he said.
Police face balancing act ahead of 2027 polls
Ruto also stressed that policing the 2027 election should not mean suppressing legitimate political activity.
The President said security agencies have a constitutional responsibility to protect the democratic space in which Kenyans exercise their freedoms.
That includes safeguarding peaceful political gatherings while taking action against violence, intimidation and other criminal conduct.
The message echoes concerns about the difficult balance police will face during the election period: allowing political competition and peaceful assembly while preventing organised violence from disrupting campaigns.
Ruto said political violence should not be treated simply as a problem involving young people at the scene of an incident. Those who recruit and finance them, he argued, should also face accountability.
“The police and other security agencies have a clear constitutional responsibility to protect a democratic space in which Kenyans exercise their freedoms,” he said.
The President’s remarks are particularly significant because Kenya’s electoral politics has repeatedly been shaped by concerns over violence, intimidation and the mobilisation of young people during political contests.
Ruto: No political objective justifies violence
Ruto said the 2027 election should give Kenyans the freedom to choose their leaders without threats or intimidation.
He warned political actors against turning competition for power into a contest involving hired gangs.
The President also urged the newly trained police officers to uphold the law and act impartially as they assume their duties. More than 6,000 recruits were passed out during the Kiganjo ceremony, according to reports on the event.
Ruto’s central message was that accountability for political violence must reach those who organise and finance it.
As Kenya moves towards the 2027 general election, his directive places the spotlight on political sponsors as well as the street-level actors involved in violence.
“Politically sponsored violence has no place in our democracy,” Ruto said.
For Kenya’s political parties and candidates, the warning is clear: campaign, organise and compete, but do so without intimidation or violence.
And for the police, Ruto has set out a broader task, not only to arrest those found at the scene of political violence, but to follow the money and identify those who recruited, transported and paid them.
