Former Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga has died at the age of 80, family sources have confirmed. Odinga passed away on Wednesday while undergoing medical treatment at a hospital in India.
In recent weeks, there had been mounting speculation about his health, although family members and political allies had consistently dismissed reports suggesting he was critically ill.
A political mobiliser and towering figure in Kenyan politics, Odinga unsuccessfully contested the presidency five times, each time rejecting the results and insisting that “victory had been stolen from him.”
He was vindicated after the 2017 elections, when Kenya’s Supreme Court annulled Uhuru Kenyatta’s victory and ordered a fresh poll. However, he boycotted the rerun, citing the need for “electoral reforms.”
Odinga had a history of reconciling with sitting presidents following divisive elections.
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After his most recent defeat in 2022, he later joined President William Ruto in a “broad-based government,” which saw several of his allies appointed to key positions.
The Ruto administration supported Odinga’s bid to become Chairperson of the African Union Commission, but despite strong regional backing, he lost to Djibouti’s Mahmoud Ali Youssouf.
Throughout his political life, Odinga inspired a passionate and loyal following, especially in western Kenya, his home region.
His supporters fondly called him “Baba” (Father), “Agwambo” (Act of God), and “Tinga” (Tractor)—the latter drawn from his party’s symbol during the 1997 elections.
He was widely seen as a master strategist and mass mobiliser, known for drawing huge crowds and connecting deeply with ordinary citizens.
Odinga will be remembered for his unwavering fight for democracy and human rights.
A former political prisoner, he holds the record as Kenya’s longest-serving detainee. His resistance against one-party rule saw him jailed twice—from 1982 to 1988 and again from 1989 to 1991—under the regime of Daniel arap Moi.
He was first imprisoned for alleged involvement in a 1982 coup attempt, an event that propelled him onto the national political stage.
By Joseph Mambili
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