Five members of the Odinga family have expressed interest in various elective seats in the 2027...
The Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) faces a major test of its internal democracy ahead of the 2027 General Election as five members of the Odinga family emerge as potential contenders for various elective positions.
The entry of Raila Odinga’s son Junior into the race for the Kibra parliamentary seat has thrust the family’s political future back into the spotlight, raising questions over whether the Odinga name will continue to command the influence it wielded under the late former Prime Minister.
For years, Raila was the undisputed political centre of gravity of the family and the broader ODM establishment, often stepping in to resolve disputes among allies and family members seeking elective positions.
With his death, however, the family is confronting a new political reality where several members are now seeking elective office at the same time, setting the stage for potentially bruising ODM nominations.
Besides Junior, ODM leader Oburu Oginga is seeking to retain his Siaya Senate seat while Kisumu Woman Representative Ruth Odinga has declared her intention to contest the Kisumu governorship.
EALA MP Winnie Odinga is reportedly considering a bid for the Nairobi Senate seat although she has not publicly confirmed her plans.
Sources have also indicated that Jaoko Oburu, Dr Oginga’s son, is considering a bid for the Bondo parliamentary seat.
If all five proceed with their ambitions, the 2027 ODM nominations will offer a rare test of how the party manages competing interests within one of Kenya’s most influential political families.
Raila Junior, 46, has already begun making inroads into Kibra, where he has been meeting social groups, elders, MCAs and politicians backing his ambition.
“Kibra was my father’s political stronghold, and as a family, we have had a long journey with the people of this constituency. If elected, I intend to focus heavily on education by ensuring that bursaries are available so that no child misses out on education,” Junior told the Daily Nation in an interview last week.
“I know some sectors, such as health and water, have been devolved, but I will do my best to ensure these services are functioning properly and to support the people of Kibra. We will focus heavily on improving the lives of residents of this constituency in every way possible,” he added.
Junior also revealed that he had worked as one of his father’s strategists in Kibra for many years.
Last week, his mother Ida Odinga gave him her blessing to pursue his political ambitions, including the Kibra parliamentary seat, while urging him to approach politics differently from the combative style that has sometimes characterised Kenyan elections.
“You as Kibra people have decided and I have no other choice. I’m releasing my son into your hands. The leaders who are here, take care of him, teach him, and guide him. Many of you started politics with Baba. Show him the way,” Mama Ida said.
She cautioned Junior to keep his politics clean and free of abuse and chaos, noting that Kibra, popularly known as Baba’s bedroom, had been an important foundation of the Odinga family’s political career.
“Convince people with your words. Convince them with what you can do for them,” she said.
There is also an intriguing historical parallel.
If Junior wins the Kibra seat, he will enter Parliament at almost the same age his father did.
Raila won the Lang’ata parliamentary seat in 1992 on a Ford Kenya ticket at the age of 47, beginning a parliamentary career that would eventually make him one of Kenya’s most consequential opposition leaders and a four-time presidential candidate.
But Junior’s path to the ODM ticket is far from guaranteed.
He will have to overcome incumbent MP Peter Orero and former MP Imran Okoth, who represented the constituency between 2019 and 2022 following the death of Ken Okoth.
“The party leader (Dr Oburu Oginga) has said there will be a free and fair nomination and I believe that. Let Junior come and compete, but as things stand, the work I have done will make things difficult for those pushing him. He can't defeat me since my CV is loaded,” Mr Orero told the Nation.
Imran, meanwhile, has threatened to leave ODM and run as an independent candidate if the party fails to conduct a credible nomination.
“There was no free and fair nomination in 2022, and I cannot tolerate that again. This time, people deserve the opportunity to choose the leader they want instead of having someone imposed on them. I have been campaigning, and I feel that I am the right person to be the MP,” he said.
“Junior is free to come and contest, but he should also know that we are members of the party and we insist there should be no favouritism whatsoever. Let Orero, Junior and I compete fairly, and whoever emerges victorious should be handed the ODM ticket,” he added.
In Siaya, Dr Oburu, 82, has already declared that he will defend his Senate seat on an ODM ticket.
He made the declaration on May 25, 2026, during a meeting of party delegates and aspirants in Nyanza, where he pledged to support competitive nominations.
“Even if you are my friend, even if you have money, don’t think that money can buy leadership. We are going to ensure there is free and fair competition,” Dr Oburu told the aspirants.
But his candidature has already drawn a formidable challenger in former Siaya Governor Cornel Rasanga, who is seeking a return to elective politics.
Rasanga, a two-term governor, has made it clear that his political relationship with Dr Oburu will not stop him from challenging him for the ODM ticket.
“The party leader is a friend of mine and is a relative of mine. It is his right to declare that he wants to defend his seat. Except he is not honest because when he was going to contest, we had agreed that he would go at that time and then he would leave me also to go. But now he is still going, so I will have a right to compete with him,” Rasanga said on June 5.
He has also threatened to explore other options should he lose the ODM nomination.
“I am an ODM life member. If they nominate me, fine. If not, I have other options,” he said.
Junior’s entry into Kibra has also complicated the political calculations surrounding Winnie Odinga.
Orero said he was surprised by Junior’s candidature after Winnie had earlier indicated that she wanted to contest the Kibra seat before changing her plans.
“Winnie came to me herself and told me that she wanted to run for Nairobi senator and was no longer interested in Kibra. Now Raila Junior is being pushed, but I am ready. I respect the Odinga family, and I am confident that I will win the ODM nomination,” he said.
Winnie, however, played down the speculation, saying her immediate focus was her father’s memorial.
“I can see Hon Orero has good plans for me. Right now I’m focusing on my father’s memorial on October 15,” she said.
If she eventually enters the Nairobi Senate race, she will face Lang’ata MP Phelix Odiwuor (Jalang’o), who has already begun campaigning for the ODM ticket.
“I am a member of ODM; that is my party, and that’s where I belong. I will be holding the ODM ticket. If ODM runs on its own, I will have that ticket; if it joins a coalition, then I will be the one flying that coalition’s flag. I will defeat anyone in the nominations, and I will win by a wide margin. Whoever comes second will be far behind me in the primaries,” Odiwuor said.
In Kisumu, Ruth Adhiambo Odinga faces perhaps the most difficult nomination battle among the family members seeking elective office.
The Woman Representative has declared her intention to run for governor, but the ODM contest is already crowded with experienced politicians, including Kisumu Central MP Joshua Oron, Nyakach MP Aduma Owuor, Kisumu Deputy Governor Dr Mathews Owili, Kisumu Senator Tom Ojienda and Kisumu Town West MP Rosa Buyu.
“All I ask for is a level playing field so that the best carries the day,” Ruth said on August 13, dismissing suggestions that she won the Woman Representative seat in 2022 largely because of the Odinga family’s political influence.
Her entry could produce one of the most fiercely contested ODM nominations in Nyanza, particularly if the party leadership insists on an open contest rather than relying on political negotiations to settle the ticket.
In Bondo, another potential Odinga family contest is taking shape. Dr Oburu’s son Jaoko Oburu is reportedly considering seeking the ODM ticket for the parliamentary seat his father held for nearly two decades.
Dr Oburu represented Bondo from 1994 following the death of his father Jaramogi Oginga Odinga, until 2013.
Should Jaoko enter the race, he is expected to face incumbent MP Gideon Ochanda, businessman Andiwo Mwai and Nam Lolwe FM journalist Haron John, all of whom have declared interest in the ODM ticket.
Efforts to reach Jaoko on phone over his reported candidature were unsuccessful. The eldest son of Dr Oginga has been crisscrossing Bondo constituency, meeting women and youth groups and occasionally hosting key political events in his home.
The emerging contests are significant because the late Raila was often the final arbiter when political ambitions within his family collided with wider party interests.
In the run-up to the 2013 elections, an intense rivalry developed between Dr Oburu and James Orengo, now Siaya Governor, over the ODM nomination for the Siaya Senate seat.
Raila intervened, and Dr Oburu switched to the gubernatorial race.
That contest also ended in controversy after Dr Oburu and William Oduol Denge, now Siaya Deputy Governor, both claimed victory in the ODM nominations.
Raila intervened again, and newcomer Cornel Rasanga was handed the ODM ticket without participating in the nominations. Dr Oburu subsequently ended up in the National Assembly through a nomination.
A similar arrangement emerged in 2017, when Dr Oburu was persuaded not to contest an elective position and instead took up a nominated seat in the East African Legislative Assembly.
Ruth also experienced the influence of Raila’s political interventions in 2013.
She had sought the ODM ticket for the Kisumu governorship but eventually settled for the deputy governor position after a nomination stalemate with Jack Ranguma, who was eventually handed the party ticket.
The difference in 2027 is that there is no longer Raila Odinga to make the final call.
That leaves ODM facing a delicate balancing act: allowing the Odinga family members to compete freely while convincing other aspirants that the party ticket will not be reserved for the family.
For a party whose fortunes have long been closely intertwined with the Odinga name, the 2027 nominations could therefore become more than a contest for elective seats.
They could be the first major test of whether ODM can manage the transition from the political dominance of its founding giant to a new generation of competing interests.
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