Portrait of Uhuru Kenyatta

Birthday profile

Uhuru Kenyatta

Uhuru Kenyatta, Kenyan politician, 4th President of Kenya

Born
October 26, 1961
Age in 2026
65
Zodiac sign
Scorpio
Birth year
1961

About Uhuru Kenyatta

Uhuru Mũigai Kenyatta ( born 26 October 1961) is a Kenyan politician who served as the fourth president of Kenya from 2013 to 2022. The son of Jomo Kenyatta, Kenya's first president, he had previously served as Deputy Prime Minister from 2008 to 2013 and as the leader of official opposition from 2003 to 2007. Daniel Arap Moi had picked Kenyatta as his preferred successor. However, he was defeated by the then opposition leader Mwai Kibaki in the 2002 election, and Kibaki was subsequently sworn in as the President. Kenyatta served as the member of parliament (MP) for Gatundu South from 2002 to 2013 and also as Deputy Prime Minister to Raila Odinga from 2008 to 2013. Currently he is a member and the party leader of the Jubilee Party of Kenya, whose popularity has since dwindled. Kenyatta was previously a member of the Kenya Africa National Union (KANU), a political party that had led Kenya to independence in 1963. He resigned from KANU in 2012 and joined The National Alliance (TNA), one of the allied parties that campaigned for his election victory during the 2013 election. He later on went to form a merger with the United Republican Party (URP) led by William Ruto to form the Jubilee Party. Kenyatta was re-elected for a second and final term in the August 2017 general elections, winning 54% of the popular vote. The win was formally declared on national television by the Chairperson of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), Wafula Chebukati. However, Uhuru's election was challenged in the Supreme Court of Kenya by his main competitor, Raila Odinga. On 1 September 2017, the court declared the election invalid and ordered a new presidential election to take place within 60 days from the day of the ruling. A new presidential election was held on 26 October, which he won, with 39.03% electoral voter participation. In October 2021, Kenyatta and six of his family members including his mother, Mama Ngina, and brother, Muhoho—were named in the Pandora Papers leak as beneficiaries of a secretive network of offshore companies and foundations. The documents revealed that the family held assets valued at over $30 million in tax havens such as Panama and the British Virgin Islands, including a secret investment portfolio and real estate. These revelations drew significant criticism, as the use of offshore entities to shield wealth directly contradicted Kenyatta's public "war on corruption" and his administration's mandate for financial transparency and lifestyle audits for Kenyan state officers. Uhuru Kenyatta was born on 26 October 1961, to the first president of Kenya, Jomo Kenyatta, and his fourth wife, Mama Ngina Kenyatta (née Muhoho). Uhuru was nominated to Parliament in 1999, he then became the Minister for Local Government under President Daniel Arap Moi and, despite his political inexperience, was favoured by Moi as his successor.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

Uhuru Kenyatta timeline

  1. Uhuru Kenyatta was born on 26 October 1961, to the first president of Kenya, Jomo Kenyatta, and his fourth wife, Mama Ngina Kenyatta (née Muhoho).
  2. Uhuru was nominated to Parliament in 1999, he then became the Minister for Local Government under President Daniel Arap Moi and, despite his political inexperience, was favoured by Moi as his successor.
  3. The son of Jomo Kenyatta, Kenya's first president, he had previously served as Deputy Prime Minister from 2008 to 2013 and as the leader of official opposition from 2003 to 2007.

The world when Uhuru Kenyatta was born

Uhuru Kenyatta was born in 1961. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1961

  • #1 song"Tossin' and Turnin'" – Bobby Lewis
  • Top movieWest Side Story
  • Top TV showGunsmoke
  • Best-selling bookCatch-22 – Joseph Heller

Headlines and milestones

  • Major sports momentRoger Maris hits 61 home runs, breaking Babe Ruth's record
  • Top headlineYuri Gagarin becomes the first person in space
  • Technology milestoneYuri Gagarin becomes first human in space
  • Defining fadSurfing culture
  • Notable inventionValium
  • World population3.08 billion

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderJohn F. Kennedy
  • Sports championNew York Yankees (World Series)
  • Also wonBoston Celtics (NBA)
  • U.S. population183.7M

1961 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Uhuru Kenyatta's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure19612026
Gas$0.31$3.45/gal
Average home$12,500$435,000
Average income$7,600$67,500
Minimum wage$1.15$7.25/hr (federal)
Movie ticket$0.69$11.95
Postage stamp$0.04$0.73
Population183.7M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, Encyclopaedia Britannica, Library of Congress. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.