Ernakulam, India: Former Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga has died in India after suffering a cardiac arrest on Wednesday morning, October 15, 2025, while undergoing treatment at an Ayurvedic hospital in Kerala State. He was 80.
According to the management of Sreedhareeyam Ayurvedic Eye Hospital and Research Centre in Koothattukulam, Odinga collapsed during his routine morning walk on the hospital campus around 9:00 a.m. and was rushed for emergency care, but doctors pronounced him dead on arrival.
The hospital confirmed that the veteran Kenyan opposition figure had been receiving treatment at the facility for the past five days, accompanied by his daughter and personal doctor.
His body has since been embalmed, awaiting repatriation to Nairobi in coordination with Kenya’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Kenyan Embassy in New Delhi.
Odinga, a towering figure in Kenyan politics, served as Prime Minister from 2008 to 2013 under the Grand Coalition Government formed after the 2007–2008 post-election crisis.
He also served as Member of Parliament for Lang’ata Constituency between 1992 and 2013 and remained the Leader of the Opposition for much of his political career.
He ran for the presidency five times—in 1997, 2007, 2013, 2017, and 2022—emerging as one of the most influential yet polarizing figures in East Africa’s political landscape.
Odinga’s family is expected to issue an official statement later on Wednesday, while messages of condolence have begun pouring in from political leaders across the region.
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