ODM issues formal notice for Special Delegates Convention amid deepening rift

The Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) has convened a Special Delegates Convention later this month in Nairobi, a move that comes at a time when the party is grappling with an escalating internal power struggle.

In a formal notice dated March 5, 2026, the party’s Deputy Secretary General Catherine Omanyo announced that the Special Delegates Convention will be held on March 27 in Nairobi starting at 9a.m.

Omanyo said the meeting has been convened pursuant to provisions of the party constitution and will bring together senior officials and delegates drawn from the party’s various organs, including members of the National Executive Committee (NEC), the Parliamentary group, Governors, County Assembly leaders and representatives of the party’s youth, women and disability leagues.

The agenda will include ratification of a National Governing Council (NGC) resolution on party leadership, consideration of a NEC resolution on Article 87 of the party constitution and an address by the party leader.

The notice effectively sets the stage for what could be a decisive moment for ODM as factions within the party jostle for control and direction.

The convention is being organised under Omanyo’s watch after the ODM NEC last month resolved to remove Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna from the powerful Secretary General position.

The decision, reached during a party meeting in Mombasa on February 11, cited concerns about discipline within the party leadership and installed Omanyo in an acting capacity until a substantive office holder is elected.

Sifuna’s removal immediately triggered a political storm inside ODM, with some leaders backing the decision while others rejected it and rallied behind the vocal Nairobi Senator.

ODM party leader Dr. Oburu Oginga later clarified that Sifuna had only been removed from the administrative role but remained a member of the party, insisting the action was a disciplinary measure rather than an expulsion.

The Political Parties Disputes Tribunal (PPDT) has since however issued and extended orders barring Sifuna’s removal as Secretary General, directing all parties in the matter to highlight their submissions on March 12, 2026.

The dispute has now, however, crystallised into two competing factions within ODM. One camp, known as ‘Linda Ground,’ is aligned with Dr. Oburu and is viewed as supportive of a broad-based political arrangement that could see the party cooperate with President William Ruto’s camp ahead of the 2027 General Election.

The opposing group, dubbed ‘Linda Mwananchi,’ is associated with Sifuna and several other ODM leaders among them Embakasi East MP Babu Owino and Siaya Governor James Orengo, who oppose closer ties with the ruling coalition and insist the party should remain firmly in the opposition.

The rivalry has played out through parallel political rallies, public statements and disagreements over the party’s strategic direction, raising fears among supporters that the once formidable opposition movement could fracture.

The planned convention comes amid sustained pressure from a section of leaders within the party who had been pushing for its immediate calling to address leadership, governance and coalition issues.

Among these included late longtime party leader Raila Odinga’s daughter Winnie Odinga, who recently raised sharp concerns over how the ODM leadership transition was handled following her father’s death.

Winnie accused sections of the political outfit of sidelining members, flouting its constitution, and conducting critical decisions behind closed doors.

Speaking on Citizen TV’s 'The Explainer' show on January 27, 2026, she said the party failed to openly communicate with its membership at a sensitive time, instead allowing what she described as a small clique to dictate the party’s direction without consultation.

“The party has not fulfilled its mandate in an open manner. Our party leader died, the party has not once come and addressed us as members to inform us our party leader has died. They’ve picked a new team; the party has not once come to tell us they’ve picked a new team,” she said then.

Winnie insisted that ODM’s governing structures - including the NEC and the Central Committee - cannot lawfully act on behalf of the party without ratification by the delegates convention.