Essayah holds an M.Sc (Econ) in business administration and accounting from the University of Vaasa.

After retiring from sports Essayah entered politics and represented the Christian Democrats in the Finnish parliament between 2003–2007 but failed to get reelected in the election of 2007.

Essayah was elected to the European Parliament in 2009 but failed to be reelected in 2014 despite her 61 000 votes.

[2] In November 2011 she undertook godparenthood for Mikola Dziadok, Belarusian activist and political prisoner.

In August, she was chosen as the new chair of her party after her predecessor, Päivi Räsänen, retired from the position after over ten years.