Two of the total number of times he lost led to chaos and massive killings and displacements.
He led the protests after the disputed 2007 election that plunged the country into its worst civil strife in which about 1,300 people were killed.
The late Kenyan politician was born on January 7, 1945, at the Anglican Church Missionary Society (CMS) Hospital in Maseno, Kisumu District (then part of Nyanza Province), to Mary Juma Odinga and Jaramogi Oginga Odinga, Kenya’s first Vice President.
As leader of the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM), Hon. Odinga joined President William Ruto’s government mid-2024 following the Gen Z-led protests that had demanded the President’s resignation under the hashtag #RutoMustGo. The protests, which began on 18 June 2024, saw thousands of young people and human rights activists take to the streets across Kenya to oppose the controversial Finance Bill 2024.
Hon. Odinga later declared his intention to vie for the Chairperson of the African Union Commission (AUC), presenting himself as a pan-African statesman devoted to continental unity, peace, and economic transformation.
Though his bid was ultimately unsuccessful, it drew widespread backing from the East African Community (EAC) and other regional blocs, marking what many viewed as the culmination of his lifelong commitment to public service and advocacy for democracy and good governance in Africa.
The late Hon. Odinga will be remembered as one of Kenya’s most influential and enduring political figures, whose career spanned over four decades of struggle for democracy, constitutional reform, and social justice.
A symbol of resilience and an icon of opposition politics, Hon. Odinga played a central role in shaping Kenya’s multiparty democracy, enduring detention, political persecution, and multiple electoral defeats with steadfast determination. For his relentless struggle against Kenya’s former one-party regime, he was imprisoned twice – first from 1982 to 1988 and again from 1989 to 1991 – during the rule of President Daniel arap Moi. The late Hon. Odinga thus holds the record as Kenya’s longest-serving political detainee.
Across Africa, the late Kenyan statesman will be remembered as a visionary champion of democracy and regional integration, a voice for the marginalized, and a leader who never lost faith in the belief that Kenya—and the continent at large—could attain freedom, unity, and prosperity through accountable leadership and the power of the people.
Agnes Aineah is a Kenyan journalist with a background in digital and newspaper reporting. She holds a Master of Arts in Digital Journalism from the Aga Khan University, Graduate School of Media and Communications and a Bachelor's Degree in Linguistics, Media and Communications from Kenya's Moi University. Agnes currently serves as a journalist for ACI Africa.
