A group of Kirinyaga County leaders wants NARC-Kenya party leader Martha Karua to take over Azimio's leadership if Raila Odinga is elected African Union Commission (AUC) chair. 

Speaking at St Monica Kiarugu Anglican Church on Sunday, Kirinyaga Woman representative Jane Maina stated that Karua is best suited to take over the reins because she was Odinga's running mate in the 2022 General Election.

"We have supported one of us and support her to take over if the opposition leader gets the post," she said.

She went on to say that Karua is an integrity-driven leader whose character has earned her global admiration.

"The iron lady was Raila Odinga's running mate under the Azimio la Umoja One Kenya coalition, the second in command in the Azimio is Martha Karua, not Kalonzo Musyoka," she added.


Raila's impending departure has caused concern in the Azimio la Umoja coalition, as top party leaders are interested in succeeding Odinga. 

Odinga has been questioned about whether he will face Wiper party leader Kalonzo Musyoka or Karua for the Azimio flagbearer position in the 2027 general election. 

Other individuals include former Mombasa Governor Hassan Joho, a member of Odinga's Orange Democratic Movement (ODM), and DAP-K party leader Wycliffe Oparanya. 

Karua had once weighed in on succession politics, advising Kalonzo to focus on campaigning for himself rather than attempting to undermine her political prominence.

"My unsolicited advise to my brother @skmusyoka is to focus on marketing himself and leave the decision of who is best to the voters," she wrote on X after a Taifa Leo report quoting Kalonzo as saying that she (Karua) is not fit for the leadership position.