Image/SC Hon Martha Karua

Martha Wangari Karua is a Kenyan lawyer, senior counsel, human rights advocate and politician born on 22 September 1957 in the former Embu District, in what was then Kenya’s Central Province. She grew up in Kimunye, in the Gichugu area of present-day Kirinyaga County. She is the daughter of Jackson Karua and Josephine Wanjiru and comes from a family of eight children.

Karua began her education at Mugumo Primary School, where she studied from Class One to Class Four. She proceeded to Kabare Primary School for Class Five before joining St Michael’s School, where she studied in Classes Six and Seven. She later attended Kiburia Girls School and Ngiriambu High School before returning to Kiburia Girls in Form Three.

Her school years included several disciplinary challenges. According to accounts of her educational journey, she was suspended after refusing to carry out a punishment involving cutting down a tree following complaints about noise-making. She was reportedly suspended on another occasion for refusing to be caned. She also returned to Kiburia Girls in Form Three after deciding to transfer because the school fees were KSh 100 lower, allowing her to retain the difference as pocket money. In Form Four, she was reportedly suspended from May until the examination period.

Karua later attended Karoti Girls School, where she sat her East African School Certificate examinations, before proceeding to Nairobi Girls’ School, now known as Moi Girls’ School, for her A-level studies.

In 1977, she joined the University of Nairobi to study law and completed her Bachelor of Laws degree in 1980. She subsequently undertook professional legal training at the Kenya School of Law between 1980 and 1981, preparing her for admission to the Roll of Advocates.

Karua began her professional career as a magistrate in 1981, serving in courts including Makadara, Nakuru and Kibera. In 1987, she left the judiciary and established Martha Karua & Company Advocates, a law firm she operated until 2002.

During her legal career, she represented clients in politically sensitive cases, including the treason trial of activist Koigi wa Wamwere. She also defended human rights activists during the administration of former President Daniel arap Moi. Her legal work included matters involving family law and matrimonial property.

Karua entered elective politics in the 1992 General Election, winning the Gichugu parliamentary seat on a Democratic Party ticket. She represented the constituency until 2013, becoming a prominent figure in Kenya’s multiparty political system.

Following the National Rainbow Coalition’s victory in the 2002 General Election, President Mwai Kibaki appointed her Minister for Water Resources Management and Development in 2003. In December 2005, she became Minister for Justice and Constitutional Affairs.

On 6 April 2009, Karua resigned from Cabinet, citing frustrations in discharging her duties and disagreements within the government. Her departure attracted public attention, particularly amid tensions surrounding judicial appointments and governance reforms.

In the 2013 General Election, Karua contested the presidency under the National Rainbow Coalition–Kenya (NARC-Kenya) ticket. She received 43,881 votes and finished sixth in the race.

In 2017, she contested the Kirinyaga gubernatorial election against Anne Waiguru. Karua received 122,091 votes, while Waiguru garnered 161,373. Karua challenged the outcome in court, alleging electoral irregularities, but her petition was unsuccessful in the Kenyan judicial system.

On 16 May 2022, Raila Odinga selected Karua as his running mate for the presidential election under the Azimio la Umoja–One Kenya Coalition. Her nomination made her the first woman selected as a running mate on a major presidential ticket in Kenya. The coalition lost the election to William Ruto and Rigathi Gachagua.

Karua has received several awards, including recognition from Human Rights Watch in 1991, FIDA-Kenya in 1995, and the International Commission of Jurists and Law Society of Kenya in 1999 for her contributions to human rights and the legal profession.

She has also represented opposition figures in regional legal matters, including Ugandan politician Kizza Besigye and Tanzanian opposition leader Tundu Lissu. Her memoir, Against the Tide: My Journey on a Less Trodden Path, documents aspects of her experiences in law, politics and public service.