Many dream of getting into politics owing to the perks that come with it. However, it has also been the cause of divorce in some prominent families.
In this article, we outline four prominent Kenyans whose marriages ended due to politics:
Atwoli and Rosalinda
The Central Organization of Trade Unions (COTU) boss Francis Atwoli's marriage to his second wife, Roselinda Simiyu, came to an end in 2016 after the latter expressed interest in politics.
Atwoli opposed the idea, but Roselinda proceeded to pursue her political ambitions, which prompted the trade unionist to part ways with her.
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Ahead of the 2022 general election, Roselinda joined President William Ruto's camp and introduced herself as Atwoli's wife, but the COTU boss put out a statement disowning her.
"Roselinda was surrendered to William Ruto in 2007 in his Eldoret townhouse. She is no longer on the list of my relatives. Ruto can now add her, free of charge, to his two recently acquired bearded wives from Western. Western Kenya is in Azimio," Atwoli posted on X (formerly Twitter).
Martha Wangari and Peter Karanja
The Gilgil Member of Parliament divorced her husband in 2018, citing, among others, domestic abuse and infidelity.
Explaining why she decided to file for divorce after five years of marriage, Wangari argued that her husband was violent, a trait she could not persevere anymore.
File image of Gilgil Mp Martha Wangari. [Photo: Courtesy]
"It is better for people to judge me for having left my husband, than people to bury me because my husband killed me. If I didn't love that man with all my heart, I would not have persevered for five years of providing for him and he beats me. He used to track my car, my phone, and my emails," she was quoted.
However, Karanja dismissed the claims and instead blamed politics for the marital woes, arguing that their marriage started facing challenges when Wangari got elected as the Gilgil MP.
Aisha Jumwa
Speaking during an interview in January 2022, the Public Service Cabinet Secretary noted that she dumped her husband after he gave her an ultimatum to choose between their marriage or politics.
"I was asked to choose my political career or to continue being his wife and I decided not to kill my career," she said.
Jumwa stated that after her divorce, she decided to take a break from marriage, further maintaining that she was not answerable to any man at that time.
"I am not a wife to anyone neither I'm I answerable to any man in this world. When I became an MCA of Takaungu, the man (her ex-husband) said he cannot be married to a politician," she added during the 2022 interview.
However, despite being a divorcee, Jumwa hinted that she had a special someone in her life, albeit not divulging much about the matter.
