William Ruto

William Ruto is the President of Kenya, having taken office in September 2022 after winning the 2022 presidential election. He is due to stand for a second term in the August 2027 general election, amid opposition slogans of 'Wantam!' (one term) calling for his removal and 'Tutam!' (two terms) backing his re-election. His tenure has been marked by a fracturing of his own political coalition, notably the 2024 impeachment of his former deputy president, Rigathi Gachagua, who has since become a prominent opposition figure. Ruto's government faces accusations of worsening human rights records, including arrests, detentions and killings of youths and activists, alongside criticism over high taxation measures such as the Housing and Social Health levies. He has championed large infrastructure projects, including the Standard Gauge Railway extension, highway expansion and the Affordable Housing Programme, and has promoted the Social Health Authority healthcare scheme. Ruto has pursued development of Kenya's critical minerals sector, including the Mrima Hill rare earths project, and has backed the $16-billion Dangote oil refinery planned for Lamu Port. He has also drawn controversy for ordering crackdowns on undocumented foreign small-scale traders and for ordering India's Tata Chemicals to halt Kenyan operations. Earlier in his career, Ruto served as Kenya's deputy president and was investigated, but not convicted, by the International Criminal Court over the 2007/8 post-election violence, a case that ended in 2016 with no case to answer following witness tampering.