1965 until winning power as head of the Party of National Unity in elections five years ago , also enjoys the support of Kenyatta 's successor , Daniel Arap Moi , a member of the Kalenjin tribe who ruled Kenya for 24 years from 1978 to 2002 . The Luo make up around 13 percent of the population , mostly in the west of the country . But they also form a sizeable community in some of Nairobi 's most notorious slums , such as the vast Kibera shantytown where Odinga enjoys strong support and where some of this week 's fiercest violence has occurred . Odinga 's Orange Democratic Movement is also backed by many members of the Luhya tribe , Kenya 's second largest ethnic group , after Odinga promised to make a leading Luhya his deputy if elected . This week 's violence came as election officials declared victory for Kibaki with 51.3 percent to 48.7 percent for Odinga in the closest presidential vote in Kenyan electoral history . But the result has been questioned by international election observers , throwing the country 's political future into doubt . Kibaki 's first election success in 2002 --
-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Kenya has enjoyed a reputation as one of East Africa 's most stable nations since achieving independence from the UK in 1963 . Residents of the Mathare slum in Nairobi shout at demonstrators during violent clashes . But a booming tourism industry , impressive economic growth -- currently six percent a year according to The Economist -- and decades of peace in a region scarred by conflict have served to disguise widespread poverty , violent crime and corruption and simmering ethnic tensions . Tribal bonds remain stronger than national identity in Kenya , with the country 's 36 million people claiming allegiance to around 40 different tribes . Last week 's election pitched incumbent President Mwai Kibaki , a member of Kenya 's largest Kikuyu tribe , against opposition leader Raila Odinga of the Luo tribe . The Kikuyu make up about 22 percent of Kenya 's population . Mostly originating from Kenya 's central highlands , the Kikuyu have long wielded strong economic and political power within the country . Kenya 's first post-independence leader , Jomo Kenyatta , president from 1964 until 1978 , was a Kikuyu . Kibaki , a government minister from