Kenyan President William Ruto has nominated Interior Minister Kithuri Kindiki as the country’s new deputy president, a day after Rigathi Gachagua was impeached in a historic vote. Kindiki, 52, is an academic turned politician who has served in Ruto’s government for over two years. However, his tenure has been marred by controversy over alleged police brutality during anti-government protests earlier this year.

The dramatic events began unfolding on Thursday, when the Senate voted to impeach Gachagua, 59, despite his absence due to hospitalization. The embattled former deputy president was found guilty of five out of 11 charges against him, including gross violation of the constitution, threatening judges, and practicing ethnically divisive politics. The vote marks the first time a deputy president has been impeached in Kenya since the process was introduced in the revised 2010 constitution.

Gachagua’s downfall is attributed to a bitter falling out with President Ruto, whom he helped win a closely contested election in 2022 by mobilizing support from the crucial Mount Kenya region. However, in recent weeks, Gachagua had complained of being sidelined by the president, while also facing accusations of supporting anti-government protests.

The National Assembly, Kenya’s lower house of parliament, had previously voted overwhelmingly in favor of impeachment on October 8. Gachagua’s attempts to halt the process through the courts were unsuccessful. As the news of his impeachment broke, Kenyan newspapers led with headlines such as “Fired” and “The night of long knives that sealed Gachagua’s fate.”

Gachagua, also known as “Riggy G,” is a powerful businessman from Kenya’s largest tribe, the Kikuyu. Despite weathering previous corruption scandals, his removal from office has sent shockwaves through the country’s politics. The impeachment process was widely followed in Kenya, a country generally regarded as a stable democracy in a turbulent region. Gachagua’s condition is currently stable, according to his doctors, after he was admitted to hospital with chest pains.

President Ruto has yet to comment publicly on the impeachment, but Gachagua has claimed that the process could not have proceeded without his boss’s blessing. As Kindiki awaits parliamentary approval for his new role, Gachagua may still choose to challenge the impeachment in court. However, the outcome of such a move remains uncertain, given his previous unsuccessful attempts to halt the process.