With encouragement from Governor Evelyn Baring and Secretary of State for the Colonies Alan Lennox-Boyd, the New Kenya Group was established on 2 April 1959 by Michael Blundell.
[1][2] It was the first multi-racial political party in Kenya, and was founded to counter African nationalism and European conservatism.
[2] In response, Llewellyn Briggs set up the United Party in August 1959, which opposed common-roll elections, but was defunct by the end of 1960.
[3] In 1960 it became the New Kenya Party, which called for independence with a multiracial coalition government.
[2] In the 1961 general elections the party received 3.2% of the vote, winning four of the 53 elected seats in the Legislative Council, and joined the coalition government led by the Kenya African Democratic Union.