Susan Wakarura Kihika is a Kenyan lawyer, politician, and the first female governor of Nakuru County. She was also among the seven female Governors that were elected in the 9 August 2022 Kenyan general election against a total 44 male governors, marking significant progress from the three female governors that had been elected in the 2017 elections.[1]
Susan Kihika | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 3rd Governor of Nakuru County | |
| Assumed office 25 August 2022 | |
| Deputy | David Kones |
| Preceded by | Lee Kinyanjui |
| Senator of Nakuru County | |
| In office 31 August 2017 – 25 August 2022 | |
| Preceded by | James Kiarie Mungai |
| Speaker of the Nakuru County assembly | |
| In office 22 March 2013 – 2017 | |
| Governor | Kinuthia Mbugua |
| Succeeded by | Joel Maina Kairu |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Susan Wakarura Kihika |
| Alma mater | |
| Occupation |
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| Website | https://susankihika.com/ |
She was elected as a senator in 2017 [2] on the Jubilee Party as a Majority whip. Susan held the position until the 11th of May 2020 when she was replaced by Senator Irungu Kang'ata.[3] Prior to that, she served as the first female speaker of the Nakuru County Assembly[2] and held the position of the Vice Chair of the County Assemblies Forum (CAF)[1].[4]
Kihika is a well-known philanthropist who has been involved in community projects and charity work including supporting women groups across the county. She is a strong advocate for the rights and welfare of children, especially those living with disabilities, and the advancement of girl child education
Susan Kihika is among the most dignified female politicians in the country and also the President of the IPU Bureau of Women Parliamentarians.[5] She was a gubernatorial aspirant for Nakuru County in the 2022 Kenyan general election. She won the election on a UDA ticket and assumed office on 25 August 2022.
Background and education
editAlice, her mother was her father's second wife.[6] Susan attended Busara Forest View Academy in Nyahururu and Bishop Gatimu Ngandu Girls’ High School in Nyeri. She then migrated to the United States around 1992, for further education.[6]
She was admitted to the University of North Texas, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science. In 2006, she graduated with a Juris Doctor degree from the Law School of Southern Methodist University, in Dallas, Texas. Subsequently, she was admitted to the Texas Bar, after passing the requisite examinations.[7]
Career before politics
editFollowing her graduation from law school, she worked in the public service.[8] Later she left public service and established The Kihika Law Firm in Dallas, Texas which specialized mostly in representing immigrants. In 2012, after 20 years in the United States, Kihika travelled back to Kenya.[2][6][7]
Political career
editIn 2013, she contested the Bahati Constituency parliamentary seat but lost to Kimani Ngunjiri. She vied for the Nakuru County Speaker’s seat where she defeated 7 opponents to emerge as the first Assembly Speaker of Nakuru County.[6][7]
In 2017, she contested the Nakuru County senatorial seat and won on a Jubilee Party ticket as the first female Senator of Nakuru County. Kihika’s vision is to see peaceful coexistence within Nakuru County She has also been involved in supporting social issues, economic empowerment initiatives and addressing insecurity
In 2018, Senator Susan Kihika was elected as the first Vice President of the Bureau of the Forum of Women Parliamentarians.[9][10] In October of the same year, Kihika took over first as the acting President and later as President replacing her predecessor Hon. Ulrika Karlsson of Sweden.
On 9 August 2022, she contested for the Nakuru County Governor and won on a UDA ticket. Susan defeated Lee Kinyanjui who was on a Jubilee Party ticket and became the first woman Governor for Nakuru County. She is commonly referred to by her county people as the "Woman of Firsts".
Family
editKihika was married to Sam Mburu in a traditional wedding on 7 November 2020 in Nyahururu.[11] The ceremony was graced by the fifth President of the Republic of Kenya,[12] Dr. William Samoei Ruto, who also took part in the dowry negotiations.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ KIPKEMOI, FELIX. "History as Kenyans elect seven women governors". The Star. Retrieved 6 March 2024.
- ^ a b c Chege, Njoki (9 August 2017). "History as Kenya set to have first elected women senators". Daily Nation. Nairobi. Retrieved 19 June 2018.
- ^ PLC, Standard Group. "The Standard". The Standard. Retrieved 7 February 2022.
- ^ "Susan Kihika - Biography and Life Story » Famous Nakuru". Famous Nakuru. 17 April 2021. Retrieved 7 February 2022.
- ^ "Bureau of Women Parliamentarians". Inter-Parliamentary Union. 2 June 2016. Retrieved 13 October 2018.
- ^ a b c d Mkawale, Steve (18 December 2016). "I am much more than my father's daughter, says Nakuru County Assembly Speaker Susan Kihika". The Standard. Nairobi. Retrieved 19 June 2018.
- ^ a b c SoftKenya (2016). "Susan Kihika Biography, Education and Politics". Nairobi: SoftKenya.com. Archived from the original on 20 June 2018. Retrieved 19 June 2018.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ "Majority Whip | The Kenyan Parliament Website". www.parliament.go.ke. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
- ^ "Forum of Women Parliamentarians". Inter-Parliamentary Union. Retrieved 31 January 2023.
- ^ "Bureau of Women Parliamentarians". Inter-Parliamentary Union. Retrieved 7 October 2022.
- ^ "Pomp and color as Nakuru Senator Susan Kihika weds Sam Mburu". Citizen Digital. 7 November 2020.
- ^ Okoth, Brian. "William Ruto sworn in as Kenya's fifth President". The Standard. Retrieved 7 October 2022.