Andrew Adipo Okuome, known as Adipo Okuome, is a political leader famous for a story of not giving up. He lost every election he ran in for 37 years, in a row.
His remarkable journey began in 1980 when he first vied for the Karachuonyo Member of Parliament seat.
For nearly four decades, he would run and lose in every subsequent election, but he never gave up.
Before venturing into politics, Okuome had a long career working as an accountant for a number of organisations including Kenya Airports Authority where he served as a top accountant.
He also dedicated time to his academic pursuits, earning a Bachelor of Commerce in Accounting from the University of Maryland in the United States.
In 2013, James Rege defeated Adipo Okuome, but when Rege later left the ODM party, it created an opening for Okuome.
He was initially at risk of not getting the party's nomination ticket in 2017, but after the process was repeated, he secured the ODM ticket against 17 other candidates. This ended his long streak of political bad luck.
In 2017, the octogenarian won the election and became the Member of Parliament for the Karachuonyo constituency for the first time in 37 years.
This was a significant victory and a source of hope for many people.
During his first term, he drew on his financial experience to serve on a parliamentary finance committee.
His voters trusted him again in 2022 and he won a second term and is currently serving as an ODM MP in the 13th Parliament.
The Karachuonyo MP is the oldest politician to have won an election in the region.
