HE. Samia Suluhu Hassan

In 2000 she was elected as a special seat member to the Zanzibar House of Representatives and was appointed a minister of Labour, Gender Development and Children by President Amani Karume. She was re-elected in 2005 and was re-appointed as a minister of Tourism, Trade and Investment until 2010. In 2020 she was elected as the member of parliament for Makunduchi constituency and President Jakaya Kikwete appointed her as the Minister of State for Union Affairs. In 2014, she was elected as the Vice Chairperson of the Constituent Assembly tasked with drafting the country’s new constitution. In July 2015 she was chosen by presidential nominee John Magufuli as his running mate for the 2015 election, making her the first female running mate in the party’s history. She subsequently became the first female vice-president in the history of the country upon Magufuli’s victory in the election.