Susan Wakarura Kihika is a Kenyan lawyer,

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

and the current

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Nakuru County Nakuru County is a county in Kenya. It is County number 32 out of the 47 Kenyan Counties. Nakuru County is a host to Kenya's Forth City – Nakuru City. On 1 December 2021, President Uhuru Kenyatta awarded a City Charter status to Nakuru, ranki ...

. She is also the first female governor of

. She was elected as a

senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

in 2017 on

Jubilee Party The Jubilee Party of Kenya was the ruling political party of the Republic of Kenya from 2016 until 13 September 2022. The party was founded on 8 September 2016, following the merger of 11 smaller parties. During the 2017 election, the Jubilee ...

as a Majorit
whip
Susan held the position until the 11th of May 2020 when she was replaced by Senator Irungu Kang'ata. Prior to that, she served as the first female speaker of

Assembly and held the position of the Vice Chair of the County Assemblies Forum (CA

Kihika is a well-known philanthropist. She 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 chil
education
Susan Kihika is among the most dignified female Politician, politicians in th
country
and also the President of th
IPU Bureau of Women Parliamentarians
She was a gubernatorial aspirant for Nakuru

County A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

in the

2022 Kenyan general election General elections are scheduled to be held in Kenya on 9 August 2022. Voters will elect the President, members of the National Assembly and Senate, county governors and members of the 47 county assemblies. Background The Constitution of Kenya ...

. She won the election and assumed office on 25 August 2022.

Background and education

Alice her mother was her father's second wife. Susan attended Busara Forest View Academy in Nyahururu and Bishop Gatimu Ngandu Girls’ High School in Nyeri. She then migrated to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

around 1992, for further education. She was admitted to the University of North Texas, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in

Political Science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

. In 2006, she graduated with a

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

degree from the Law School of

Southern Methodist University , mottoeng = "The truth will make you free" , established = , type = Private research university , accreditation = SACS , academic_affiliations = , religious_affiliation = United Methodist Church , president = R. Gerald Turner , prov ...

, in

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

, Texas. Subsequently, she was admitted to the Texas Bar, after passing the requisite examinations.

Career before politics

Following her graduation from law school, she worked in the public service. Later she left public service and established ''The Kihika Law Firm'' in

, Texas which had specialized mostly in representin
immigrants
In 2012, after 20 years in the United States, Kihika travelled back to

Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

Political career

In 2013, she contested the Bahati Constituency parliamentary seat but lost to Kiman
Ngunjiri
She vied for the Nakuru County Speaker’s seat where she defeated
opponents
to emerge as the first Assembly Speaker of Nakuru County. In 2017, she contested the

senatorial seat and won on a

ticket as the first female Senator of Nakuru County. Kihika’s vision is to see peaceful coexistence within Nakur
county
She has also been involved in supporting social issues, economic empowerment initiatives and addressin
insecurity
In 2018, Senator Susan Kihika was elected as the first Vice President of the Bureau of the Forum of Women Parliamentarians. In October the same year, Kihika took over first as the acting President and later as President replacing her predecessor Hon. Ulrik
Karlsson
o
Sweden
On 9 August 2022, she contested for the

Governor and won on a UDA ticket. Susan defeated Lee Kinyanjui who was on a

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

Kihika was married to Sam Mburu in a traditional wedding on 7 November 2020 in Nyahururu. The ceremony was graced by the fifth President of the republic of Kenya, Dr. William Samoei

Ruto Ruto, or Rutto, is a surname of Kenyan origin. Notable people with the surname include: *Christopher Ruto, Anglican bishop in Kenya *Cyrus Rutto (born 1992), Kenyan long distance runner * David Ruto (born 1980), Keyan long distance runner * Emily ...

, who also took part in the dowr
negotiations

References

External links