The CORD (Coalition for Reforms and Democracy) was the broad opposition alliance that contested the 2013 election under the presidential candidacy of Raila Odinga, uniting multiple parties and ethnic constituencies in opposition to the Jubilee Coalition. CORD represented the historical opposition pole in Kenyan politics, anchored by Raila's Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) but extending across the Luhya, Kamba, and coastal communities that had formed the backbone of opposition voting patterns since the reintroduction of multiparty democracy in 1992.
Raila Odinga, a Luo politician and longtime opposition figure, was making his third consecutive presidential attempt, having contested elections in 2007 and 2010 with limited success in the latter (he declined to run as a presidential candidate in 2010, focusing instead on reshaping the constitutional order). Raila possessed deep historical connections to Kenya's liberation struggle through his father Oginga Odinga's prominence in post-independence politics, considerable organizational capacity through the ODM party apparatus, and broad appeal among younger, urban voters and constituencies outside the historical Kikuyu-Kalenjin power nexus. His 2007 candidacy had nearly won the presidency before disputed results triggered post-election violence, imbuing his 2013 campaign with both narrative momentum and the accumulated grievance of those who believed him wrongly denied office.
CORD's coalition structure incorporated the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM), the Wiper Democratic Movement led by Kalonzo Musyoka, and the Ford-Kenya and Ford-Asindi parties led by Moses Wetangula and Musikari Kombo respectively. This multi-party structure, while providing ethnic breadth, also created strategic vulnerabilities. Unlike Jubilee's more cohesive central and Rift Valley base, CORD's constituencies (Luo, Kamba, Luhya, coastal) were geographically dispersed and possessed different historical relationships to national politics. Coordinating messaging, resource allocation, and running mate selection across this coalition proved perpetually challenging and consumed considerable coalition attention.
The CORD campaign platform emphasized institutional accountability, prosecution of perpetrators of post-election violence, and inclusive governance that would address regional inequality and marginalization. The coalition's messaging sought to position CORD as the vehicle for genuine reform and transition, implicitly contrasting the prospect of a CORD government's openness to accountability with the Jubilee coalition's perceived desire to suppress justice and protect those implicated in violence. This accountability framing resonated particularly among constituencies that had suffered in 2007 violence, young voters concerned about institutional integrity, and urban middle-class voters skeptical of ethnic voting patterns.
Raila's selection of a running mate proved consequential. The coalition ultimately nominated Kalonzo Musyoka, the Wiper leader and a former Vice President, as Raila's vice-presidential partner. This selection was intended to strengthen CORD's appeal in the Kamba region (Makueni and Kitui counties) and to signal to the broader southern coalition that their interests would be represented at the highest levels of a potential CORD government. The Raila-Kalonzo ticket thus represented an attempt at a southern and western bloc unified against the central and Rift Valley concentration of Jubilee.
CORD's campaign resources were considerably more constrained than Jubilee's, a disparity that manifested in media presence, rally frequency, and voter mobilization infrastructure. The coalition struggled to match Jubilee's financial outlay, television and radio presence, and on-the-ground organization in contested regions. Additionally, CORD faced persistent divisions within its ethnic constituencies: the Kamba community was split between Kalonzo supporters and segments that preferred Uhuru, while Luhya areas demonstrated mixed allegiances, with segments supporting both tickets.
The CORD coalition also mobilized around concerns about the ICC and international justice, but from an opposite angle than Jubilee. CORD messaging emphasized that the ICC indictees should face accountability, that international justice was a prerequisite for lasting peace and reconciliation, and that a Raila-led government would cooperate with international institutions rather than resist them. This framing, however, lacked the ethnic resonance of Jubilee's counter-framing and proved insufficient to overcome the Jubilee coalition's numerical advantage in high-population regions.
See Also
2013 Election 2013 Election Jubilee Coalition 2013 Election ICC Factor 2013 Election Raila Campaign 2013 Election Results 2013 Election Regional Patterns
Sources
- Wanyande, Peter. (2013). Political Parties and Political Coalitions in Kenya. Kenya Institute for Public Policy Research and Analysis.
- Cheeseman, Nic and Tendi, Blessing. (2010). Power-Sharing in Comparative Perspective: The Dynamics of "Unity Government" in Kenya and Zimbabwe. Journal of Modern African Studies, 48(2), 203-229.
- Hornsby, Charles. (2012). Kenya: A History Since Independence. I.B. Tauris Publishers.