The political succession question in one of Kenya’s most prominent families has entered a new and delicate chapter, with the symbolic coronation of Winnie Odinga as her late father Raila Odinga’s political heir.
What was presented as a ceremony celebrating Winnie’s emergence quickly acquired a deeper political meaning, particularly after her brother, Raila Junior, kept away from the event and instead appeared at a separate political gathering where his own parliamentary ambitions were endorsed.
Winnie, a member of the East Africa Legislative Assembly, was on Saturday crowned as the political heir of the late former Prime Minister at a ceremony attended by her mother Ida, and several elders and family associates.
But Raila Junior said he was not aware of the coronation and made it clear that his own political journey was already taking shape.
Winnie Odinga during her anointing by Rose Otumba, Women Representative of the Luo Council of Elders in Siaya, in Bondo, Siaya County, on October 3, 2026.
Photo credit: Alex Odhiambo | Nation
On the same day, he and Jaoko Oburu, son of ODM Party Leader Dr Oburu Oginga, visited former Kakamega Governor and Cabinet Secretary for Cooperatives Wycliffe Oparanya at his home in Mabole, where their respective bids for the Kibra and Bondo parliamentary seats received the CS’s backing.
The two events, unfolding simultaneously, offered a striking picture of a political family navigating the difficult terrain of succession after the death of its patriarch.
Now, with the 2027 elections approaching, the question is no longer simply who bears the Odinga name, but how that political inheritance will be distributed, represented and ultimately sustained.
In an interview with the Nation, Raila Jnr said he was focused on building his political career and remained the head of the Raila family after being installed following his father’s death in October 2025.
“I’m focusing on building my political career and building my own image as Raila Junior, Raila Kembo (his political bragging name), and I’m optimistic I will succeed. I’m not just banking on Baba’s (Raila Odinga’s) name, nor am I fighting to be endorsed by anyone. I have to put in a lot of effort because even Raila’s successful political career didn’t come easy; he had to fight to make a name,” he said.
He added: “I was with Kawuor (the family’s clan) elders in Kakamega with my brother Jaoko and that was the only event I was aware of,” he added.
He avoided being seen to be in confrontation with his sister but said he had contacted Luo Council of Elders chairman Odungi Randa over Winnie’s coronation and took issue with the event.
“Ker (the chairman) told me he didn’t support the issue and told me the elder who was in charge of the event had apologised to him,” said Raila Junior.
Contacted, Mr Randa told the Nation that the elders present at the function were well-known, experienced elders who were aware of what they presided over.
He, however, said, since he was not around, he would speak to them before establishing the weight and impact of their actions.
“I was not present, but the elders who were there are very experienced and are clearly aware of their actions. I will have to talk to them first to understand whether there was any wrongdoing from their end,” said Ker Randa.
Elder Jotham Ajiki, the Secretary of the Luo Council of Elders, however, said he could not apologise because he had been invited to Raila’s home without knowing what was going to happen.
Winnie Odinga during her anointing by Rose Otumba, Women Representative of the Luo Council of Elders in Siaya, in Bondo, Siaya County, on October 3, 2026.
Photo credit: Alex Odhiambo | Nation Media Group
“If you are invited to someone’s home, do you dictate what to do or what happens there? As a friend of Raila for many years, I was called by Mama Ida for the event and was directed on what to do while I was there,” said Mr Ajiki. He added: “I can’t apologise because of what happened; I was Mama’s (Mrs Odinga’s) guest, and I couldn’t decline. But let me say that since I started walking with the late Raila, it is Winnie I have known and even Ker (Odungi Randa) was aware of this issue, so he shouldn’t insinuate otherwise.”
He said elders from the Kawuor, the Odingas’ clan, were also present.
At Mr Oparanya’s home, Raila Jnr and Jaoko also took with them elders from the Kawuor clan, who praised the close and cordial relationship between the late Raila Odinga and the CS.
Winnie is under growing pressure from her late father’s political base to take a frontline role in 2027, with the Nairobi senatorial seat emerging as a likely option, according to people close to the family who attended Sunday’s gathering at Opoda farm in Bondo.
After a year of grief and reflection following the death of the former Prime Minister on October 15 last year, veterans, confidants and grassroots mobilisers used the occasion to urge Winnie to step forward. Several of those pushing her, insiders say, see Nairobi as the natural stage.
For supporters waiting on the family to indicate what comes next, Saturday offered long-awaited clarity. Those close to the Odingas say Winnie’s big step into the political stage shows the late leader’s values will be carried forward within a structure that protects his legacy.
The capital was the engine of Odinga’s national politics, and his supporters there say they want someone who represents them directly.
People close to the family argue that Winnie, who grew up in the thick of her father’s campaigns, carries both the name and a younger, modern appeal suited to the city’s voters.
“She is no newcomer, having stood beside her father through his toughest battles and was instrumental in shaping campaign direction, creative work and the digital tools that modernised his image. She keeps close ties with staff of the Raila Secretariat, whom she continues to support,” said the source close to the Odinga family, who spoke in confidence.
Raila Junior addresses guests during the groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of the Raila Amolo Odinga Mausoleum at Kang'o ka Jaramogi in Bondo, Siaya County, on July 20, 2026.
Photo credit: Alex Odhiambo | Nation Media Group
Following her coronation, she said she would now embark on politics after keeping a low profile for some time and leaving many guessing about her next move.
“Many people were asking where Winnie went, but I decided to take some time to mourn Jakom (Raila Odinga). I saw Raila’s soldiers heartbroken when he died, and they didn’t want to fight any longer; that is why I was silent for a year to grieve, but now that time is over and it is time to move forward,” she said.
Insiders read this as a signal that a decision on Nairobi will follow consultation rather than precede it.
Perhaps conscious of the political meaning that would be attached to her coronation, Winnie sought to place the question of succession in a broader historical and cultural context, drawing a parallel with the unfolding succession dispute in Uganda’s Tooro Kingdom.
She invoked the controversy surrounding the succession of King Edward Rukidi Nyabongo I, who was crowned on September 29, 2026, following the death of King Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV.
The Tooro succession has itself been accompanied by competing claims within the royal family and clan, with members of the late King’s family questioning the process that produced his successor.
Winnie used the episode to make a broader point about the delicate responsibility that comes with succession, arguing that titles and positions should not simply be seized but should emerge from a process in which elders play their traditional role as custodians of the community.
“I am not saying Tooro has agreed on one thing, but it has taught me something. Title or position is not something that is forcefully taken. I know many of you believe that power is grabbed and not given, but we all have different interpretations of this. However, elders have a responsibility of preserving and protecting the community, so we have to decide which way is good for us,” said Winnie.
For the elders who gathered to crown Winnie, the ceremony may have been intended to provide an answer to a question that has lingered since Raila’s death. But Raila Junior’s absence, coupled with the increasingly public pursuit of his own political ambitions, has ensured that the succession question remains open.
Mama Ida Odinga (centre), flank by her daughters Resemary Odinga (left) and Winnie Odinga (right) speaks during the crowning of Winnie by the Luo Council of Elders in Bondo, Siaya County, on October 3, 2026.
Political veterans, who worked closely with the late Odinga, also added their voice to the leadership debate but wanted Ida to give the way forward.
“ODM is intact if one person from the family is within the leadership ranks. We know Dr Oburu Oginga is there, and we are aware of the current position you hold in the country, but we want you (Ida) to take up a position within the party and be on the frontline,” said Mr Jaramogi Ogana, Secretary General of the Veterans.
“One would expect that within ODM, a position be preserved for the Odinga family since the party was an asset of the family, but agree amongst yourselves and give us one person because we do not want any friction and we shall rally behind him or her.”
