Raila Odinga Embodied the Spirt—and Contradictions

Obituary

Raila Odinga Embodied the Spirt—and Contradictions—of Kenyan Democracy

How the country’s most relentless opposition leader became a statesman of compromise. October 21, 2025, 3:23 PM Comment icon View Comments ( )

Odinga, a man in his 70s in a yellow shirt and straw hat, is seen from behind holding up one arm as he speaks from an outdoor stage, facing a crowd of thousands of people stretching to the horizon beneath a cloudy sky.

The death of Raila Odinga, Kenya’s former prime minister and most enduring opposition figure, closes a defining chapter in the nation’s political life. For more than 40 years, Odinga embodied Kenya’s democratic struggles, from detention under an autocratic regime to decades of electoral contests that reshaped the country’s political landscap