Nairobi Senate aspirant Beatrice Waithera has raised concerns over the safety of women in Kenya's political arena, alleging that she was abducted, detained for two days, and subjected to intimidation while mobilising support for her 2027 electoral bid.
Waithera, who is seeking the Nairobi Senate seat on a Jubilee Party ticket, said unidentified individuals dressed in police or paramilitary-style uniforms picked her up while she was engaging members of the public about her political ambitions.
Speaking on Radio Generation's Power File show on Monday, the aspirant said the incident happened approximately two weeks ago, when she was conducting grassroots mobilisation in Nairobi.
She alleged that she was taken to an undisclosed location, locked in a room for two days, and denied food as her captors questioned her.
"I was talking to people and telling them about my bid. Some two people in police uniform that I could not quite recognise, or wearing paramilitary attire, came and picked me up two weeks ago. They took me and locked me up in a room for two days. I was starved, and questions were asked," she said.
Her allegations have brought renewed attention to the challenges women encounter when seeking political office, particularly during grassroots mobilisation, where candidates must interact directly with communities, build political networks and persuade voters to support their ambitions.
Although political intimidation affects candidates across genders, women aspirants often navigate additional gender-related vulnerabilities, including threats, harassment, attempts to discredit their ambitions, and intimidation that can discourage them from participating in public political activities.
The risks can extend beyond election campaigns to everyday political engagement, with women required to balance visibility and accessibility with concerns about their personal safety. Such experiences can also affect their ability to mobilise supporters, access political spaces and sustain campaigns.
Waithera said her alleged abduction was not an isolated security concern, claiming that she had previously received threatening messages through WhatsApp and experienced attempts to compromise her mobile phone.
She also recounted an earlier incident in which her phone was allegedly taken after she showed someone a campaign poster and sought their opinion about her preferred political party.
"I was showing someone my poster and asking them what they thought about a particular party. The person asked to see the poster, and as I was showing it to them, my phone was taken. I never got that phone back," she said.
The aspirant further disclosed that she had recently replaced her iPhone 13 Pro Max following what she described as attempted hacking, adding that another phone taken from her had not been recovered.
She said the experiences forced her to temporarily leave Nairobi as she assessed the risks associated with continuing her political activities.
"Have I seen people come to my WhatsApp DM to threaten me? Yes. I just replaced my iPhone 13 Pro Max because there was an attempt to hack my phone. Have I gotten it back? No. So security is an issue. For women, it is becoming dangerous for us to go out there," she explained.
Waithera claimed her alleged captors attempted to discourage her from speaking publicly about the incident, telling her that nobody would believe her account. She nevertheless maintained that she would continue speaking about her experience.
Beyond the security concerns, the aspirant said her decision to seek elective office followed eight years of civic engagement, including participating in efforts to present petitions to Parliament without achieving the policy changes she had anticipated.
"I am tired as a person who has previously been on the front line for eight years, taking petitions to Parliament and nothing ever moves. So after the petition, getting to where the policy work is done is what should happen," she said.
Her political journey began with grassroots mobilisation during the 2013-2017 election cycle. She considered contesting for the Nairobi Senate seat in 2022 but opted to support her cousin's campaign, saying she was not adequately prepared.
Having declared her latest bid in February 2026, Waithera has since adopted unconventional mobilisation strategies, including Siasa kwa Matatu, an initiative through which she boards public transport to discuss constitutional issues and governance with passengers.
She also questioned restrictions on nighttime political activities, arguing that they could limit candidates' opportunities to engage communities.
Despite the alleged abduction and threats, Waithera maintained that she would not abandon her political ambitions, insisting that women should be able to pursue elective positions without fear of intimidation.
Her account reaffirms the importance of protecting political participation and ensuring that women can campaign, organise and compete for leadership positions without their safety becoming an obstacle to their ambitions.