The party was launched by William Ruto, in conjunction with several Kenyan politicians allied to a faction of Orange Democratic Movement opposed to Raila Odinga, as their vehicle for the March 2013 general elections.

The party's launch was announced after a week of meetings on 15 January 2012.

[1] In December, Ruto and the leaders of several other political parties signed a pre-election coalition deal, in which he became a running mate for Uhuru Kenyatta and URP received half the spoils of an election victory.

[2] The party subsequently joined the Jubilee Alliance, which nominated Kenyatta for the presidency.

In the elections Kenyatta was elected president, whilst the URP emerged as the third-largest party in Parliament, winning 12 seats in the Senate and 76 in the National Assembly.