NAIROBI, Kenya — The Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) has appointed Siaya Senator Dr. Oburu Oginga as the acting party leader, following the death of former Prime Minister Raila Amolo Odinga, the party’s founding leader and long-time opposition figurehead.
Confirming the decision on Thursday, Mombasa Governor Abdulswamad Nassir, who also serves as ODM’s Deputy Party Leader, said the move was made to ensure stability within the party as it mourns and prepares for a formal leadership transition.
“ODM has designated Senator Oburu Oginga as acting party leader until such a time when the top party organs meet and elect a substantive leader,” Governor Nassir said. “This is in line with the party’s constitution, which provides for continuity in times of transition.”
The announcement comes amid a wave of mourning and reflection across Kenya and beyond, following Odinga’s death earlier this week in India, where he was receiving medical treatment.
Odinga, 80, was widely regarded as the face of Kenya’s democratic struggle, having spent decades fighting for political reform and multiparty democracy.
Nassir said the decision to have Senator Oburu temporarily lead ODM was unanimous, made after consultations among senior party officials and members of the National Executive Council (NEC).
“Oburu has been a pillar of wisdom within the movement and will guide the party through this moment of grief and transition. Baba’s vision for a just, united, and democratic Kenya will continue to live on,” Nassir added.
Political observers view the appointment as both symbolic and stabilizing, given Oburu’s close familial and ideological ties to his late brother. The 82-year-old senator, a seasoned economist and long-serving public servant, has been part of ODM’s inner circle since its inception and is one of the few remaining veterans from the original reformist bloc that shaped Kenya’s political landscape in the 1990s.
ODM insiders say the party will convene a National Governing Council (NGC) meeting in the coming weeks to chart a roadmap for a special delegates conference, where a substantive party leader will be elected in accordance with the ODM constitution.
Meanwhile, the party’s secretariat has called for calm among supporters, urging them to honor Odinga’s legacy by maintaining unity and peace.
“We are in mourning, but we are also in transition,” ODM Executive Director Oduor Ong’wen said in a brief statement. “Our focus now is to celebrate Baba’s legacy while protecting the institution he built.”
ODM remains the largest opposition party in Kenya and a key member of the Azimio la Umoja–One Kenya Coalition, whose future direction now hangs in the balance following Odinga’s passing.
