Michuki made an impressive political come-back in the aftermath of the abortive Coup d’état by elements of the Kenya Air Force that nearly toppled Daniel Moi from power on 1 August 1982 and the political shake-up that followed the "Njonjo Commission of Inquiry" which set the stage for the dramatic fall of the then powerful former Attorney-General and Minister for Constitution Affairs, Charles Njonjo, and many of his allies in 1983. Michuki captured the chairmanship of the then powerful single party, the Kenya African National Union (KANU) in 1983, and dislodged Kamotho from the Kangema seat in the 1983 snap election.