NAIROBI, Kenya — Raila Odinga, Kenya’s former prime minister and one of Africa’s most enduring political figures, has died at the age of 80.
Odinga passed away on Wednesday, October 15, 2025, in India after suffering cardiac arrest during a morning walk at an Ayurvedic hospital, where he had been receiving treatment for what his family described as “bacterial infections,” according to The Standard newspaper. He collapsed on the hospital grounds and was later pronounced dead on arrival.
A veteran opposition leader and founder of the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM), Odinga served as Kenya’s prime minister from 2008 to 2013 under a power-sharing arrangement with then-President Mwai Kibaki, following a disputed election that triggered widespread violence.
Over the decades, Odinga became synonymous with Kenya’s democratic struggle, contesting the presidency five times — in 1997, 2007, 2013, 2017, and 2022 — without ever securing victory.
He consistently alleged that his mandates were stolen, shaping his image as both a reformist and a perennial challenger of entrenched power.
Despite his fierce opposition politics, Odinga was known for ultimately reconciling with his rivals.
After his most recent defeat in 2022, he joined President William Ruto in a “broad-based government,” a political arrangement that saw several of his allies appointed to senior government positions.
His influence extended far beyond Kenya.
In 2019, Odinga made international headlines after criticising political corruption in Africa, citing Nigeria as an example of how public officeholders “amass wealth illegally.”
Odinga also sought to expand his legacy beyond national politics.
Earlier this year, he ran for the position of chairperson of the African Union (AU) Commission, with the backing of several African leaders, including former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo.
Despite strong regional support, he lost the contest to Djibouti’s foreign minister, Mahmoud Ali Youssouf.
Vice-President Kashim Shettima of Nigeria once drew parallels between Odinga and Atiku Abubakar, the opposition presidential candidate in Nigeria’s 2023 elections, describing both as figures defined by persistence in the face of political adversity.
Born into a politically prominent family — his father, Jaramogi Oginga Odinga, was Kenya’s first vice president — Raila Odinga spent much of his life at the centre of the country’s turbulent political evolution.
Imprisoned and exiled at various points, he became a symbol of resilience and defiance against authoritarian rule.
In 2015, Odinga lost his eldest son, Fidel, who was named after Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro.
He is survived by his wife, Ida, and three other children.
President Ruto is expected to address the nation on Odinga’s death, which marks the end of an era in Kenyan politics.
Tributes have already begun pouring in from across Africa, honouring a man often described as both a rebel and a reformer — one whose voice shaped the continent’s democratic conversation for more than half a century.
