Raila Odinga Junior, son of Kenya’s late former prime minister and veteran opposition leader, is preparing to run for a parliamentary seat in Nairobi in 2027. He has already begun cultivating support in two constituencies, including Kibra, where his father dominated politics for more than two decades.
Kibra was more than a constituency to Raila Odinga. He once called it his “political bedroom,” a place he transformed into a launchpad for national defiance and presidential ambitions during his years as MP from 1992 to 2013. Now his son, Raila Junior, appears determined to step into that space.
Junior has spent the past few weeks meeting residents in Kibra and Embakasi South, speaking to church groups and engaging youth and women. At a recent gathering in Kibra, he made his intentions clear: “I have started planning how Kibra will look like post 2027. You know how to get me into office.”
He is not alone in the political arena. His younger sister, Winnie Odinga, has been a member of the East African Legislative Assembly in Arusha since 2022, representing Kenya. Junior’s entry adds another Odinga to the family’s political frontline.
Nairobi based analyst Edwin Kegoli said the younger Odinga’s move is unsurprising, given the need to preserve his father’s legacy. “Raila Junior will win in Kibra because of his father’s name. He will get sympathy votes, not because of his promises to the people,” Kegoli said. He added that inheriting such a base requires patience and that Junior must develop his own political style, becoming a voice for social justice and equity as his father once was.
Born in 1979, Raila Junior presents a different temperament from the fiery orator his father was. He is described as calm and measured in public. For years, he remained out of the spotlight, focusing on personal and family businesses. He studied accounting and finance at the University of Wales and earned a master’s degree in finance from the University of Leeds. He also works at East Africa Spectre, the Nairobi based gas cylinder manufacturer that is the largest in Eastern and Central Africa.
Junior belongs to the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM), founded by his father, but holds no official party position. Since his father’s death, he has used social media to call for unity in the divided party and to honour his father’s legacy. He has also defended his uncle, Oburu Oginga, who has emerged as the head of the ODM faction backing President William Ruto. “ODM is the party that solves problems of ordinary Kenyans,” Junior told supporters in Kilgoris on 8 August.
In May, Junior stepped forward to defend his sister after Finance Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi criticised Winnie Odinga for supporting the Linda Mwananchi faction, a breakaway group led by Edwin Sifuna. “Stop making comments about Baba’s family please. Whether you are a CS, whether you are a PS, or anything. This has to end,” he said at a meeting with Nairobi residents, as quoted by the Daily Nation. “On Linda Mwannachi and Linda Ground factions… I will leave it to my sister, Winnie Odinga, who is the politician.”
Junior’s status within the family has also changed. After the death of his eldest brother, Fidel Castro Odinga, in 2015, and the passing of his father nearly a year ago, Junior has become the head of the Odinga family, following Luo traditions. The installation marked the symbolic transfer of family leadership from his late father to him. That role gives him authority over critical family decisions and makes him the family’s spokesman on political and social matters.
In 2020, Junior disclosed that he suffers from acoustic neuroma, a rare brain tumour described as malignant yet not cancerous, which has left the right side of his face partially paralysed since childhood.
As the 2027 elections approach, Raila Junior faces the challenge of converting a famous surname into electoral success while also defining his own political identity. His father’s old strongholds in Nairobi will be the testing ground.
