Kenya did not yet exist as a sovereign country at the time of Obama’s birth. Because Obama’s father was a British subject, Obama was probably born a dual national. (At that time, British nationality only passed through the father; you could be born IN the UK to a British mother and you would not get UK nationality unless your father was also a UK national.) But Obama lost that status when Kenya became independent, becoming a Kenyan citizen, and he lost his Kenyan citizenship when he turned 23 (retroactive to age 21) because at that time, Kenya’s constitution prohibited dual citizenship for adults. In 2010 Kenya adopted a new constitution which permits dual citizenship and also enacted a new nationality law that allows former citizens to regain Kenyan nationality so Obama could get his Kenyan citizenship back if he so desired.
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