List of heads of state of the Central African Republic
This article lists the heads of state of the Central African Republic. There have been seven heads of state of the Central African Republic and the Central African Empire since independence was obtained from France on 13 August 1960. This list includes not only those persons who were sworn into office as President of the Central African Republic but also those who served as de facto heads of state.
| President of the Central African Republic | |
|---|---|
| Président de la République centrafricaine | |
 Presidential standard | |
 | |
| Residence | Renaissance Palace, Bangui |
| Seat | Bangui |
| Term length | Seven years, unlimited terms |
| Inaugural holder | David Dacko |
| Formation | 12 December 1960 21 September 1979 (office reestablished) |
| Salary | EUR €3,049 per month[1] |
Jean-Bédel Bokassa served as a de facto head of state (and also reigned as emperor from 1976 to 1979), while David Dacko (who served as de facto head of state from 1979 to 1981), André Kolingba, Ange-Félix Patassé, and François Bozizé were elected into office at some point during their tenure. To date, Kolingba is the only former head of state of the Central African Republic to voluntarily step down from the office through a democratic process, following the 1993 general election.
The current president of the Central African Republic is Faustin-Archange Touadéra, since 30 March 2016.[2]
Succession
editBefore the adoption of the 2023 constitution, the president of the National Assembly was the constitutional successor of the president in the event of a vacancy.[3]
Term
editBefore the adoption of the 2023 constitution,[4] there was a two-term limit for the president in the Constitution of the Central African Republic. The term limit was not met by any president.[5] The constitution of 2023 removed term-limits and extended the presidential term from five years to seven years.
Political affiliations
edit- Political parties
Rally for the Republic (RPR)
United Hearts Movement (MCU)
- Other factions
For heads of state with multiple affiliations, the political party listed first is the party the person was affiliated with at the beginning of the tenure.
Heads of state
edit| No. | Portrait | Name (Birth–Death) |
Elected | Term of office | Political affiliations | Notes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Took office | Left office | Time in office | |||||||
| Central African Republic (1960–1976) | |||||||||
| — | 
|
David Dacko (1930–2003) President of the Provisional Government |
— | 14 August 1960[6] | 12 December 1960[A] | 5 years, 140 days | MESAN | Dacko served as president of the government from 1 May 1959[7] until the country declared its independence on 13 August 1960.[8] | |
| 1 | David Dacko (1930–2003) President |
1964 | 12 December 1960 | 1 January 1966[9] | |||||
| 2 | .jpg)
|
Jean-Bédel Bokassa (1921–1996) President |
— | 1 January 1966[B] | 4 December 1976 | 10 years, 338 days | Military | Bokassa seized power from Dacko in a successful coup d'état. He changed his name to Salah Eddine Ahmed Bokassa after converting to Islam on 20 October 1976.[10] | |
| MESAN[C] | |||||||||
| Central African Empire (1976–1979) | |||||||||
| 1 |
|
Bokassa I (1921–1996) Emperor |
— | 4 December 1976[D] | 21 September 1979[11] | 2 years, 291 days | MESAN | Bokassa spent approximately US$20 million—one third of the country's annual budget—on his coronation ceremony on 4 December 1977.[12] | |
| Central African Republic (1979–present) | |||||||||
| 3 |
|
David Dacko (1930–2003) President |
1981 | 21 September 1979[E] | 1 September 1981[13] | 1 year, 345 days | MESAN | This was Dacko's second time as president of the Central African Republic. In February 1980, Dacko established the Central African Democratic Union (UDC) as the country's only political party.[14] | |
| UDC | |||||||||
| — | 
|
André Kolingba (1936–2010) Chairman of the Military Committee of National Recovery |
— | 1 September 1981[F] | 21 September 1985[G] | 12 years, 51 days | Military | Kolingba seized power from Dacko in a successful coup d'état. Ange-Félix Patassé, with the assistance of François Bozizé, launched an unsuccessful coup d'état against the Kolingba government on 3 March 1982.[15] | |
| — | André Kolingba (1936–2010) President and head of state |
21 September 1985 | 21 November 1986 | Kolingba established the Central African Democratic Rally (RDC) as the country's only party in May 1986.[16] | |||||
| RDC | |||||||||
| 4 | André Kolingba (1936–2010) President |
1986[H] | 21 November 1986 | 22 October 1993 | |||||
| 5 | 
|
Ange-Félix Patassé (1937–2011) President |
1993[I] 1999 |
22 October 1993[17] | 15 March 2003 | 9 years, 144 days | MLPC | Bozizé launched an unsuccessful coup d'état against the Patassé government on 28 May 2001.[18] | |
| 6 | 
|
François Bozizé (born 1946) President |
2005 2011 |
15 March 2003[J][19] | 24 March 2013 | 10 years, 9 days | Military | Bozizé seized power from Patassé in a successful coup d'état. Shortly after, he appointed Abel Goumba as prime minister. Goumba had served as acting prime minister in 1959, before being overthrown by Dacko.[20] | |
| Independent | |||||||||
| 7 | 
|
Michel Djotodia (born 1949) President |
— | 24 March 2013[K] | 18 August 2013 | 292 days | Military | Djotodia was the leader of the Séléka rebel coalition in the ongoing civil war. | |
| — | Michel Djotodia (born 1949) Head of State of the Transition |
18 August 2013 | 10 January 2014[L] | ||||||
| — | 
|
Alexandre-Ferdinand Nguendet (born 1972) Acting Head of State of the Transition |
— | 10 January 2014 | 23 January 2014 | 13 days | RPR | Nguendet succeeded Djotodia after his resignation due to the continued conflict. | |
| — | 
|
Catherine Samba-Panza (born 1954) Head of State of the Transition |
— | 23 January 2014 | 30 March 2016 | 2 years, 67 days | Independent | Samba-Panza became the first female head of state of the Central African Republic. | |
| 8 |
|
Faustin-Archange Touadéra (born 1957) President |
2015–16 2020–21 |
30 March 2016 | Incumbent | 8 years, 231 days | Independent | Previously, Touadéra served as prime minister under Bozizé from 2008 until 2013. | |
| MCU | |||||||||
Footnotes
edit- A Dacko became the official President of the Central African Republic after defeating Abel Goumba in an internal power struggle. Dacko had support from the French government.
- B Bokassa seized power by staging a coup d'état from 31 December 1965 until 1 January 1966. Bokassa forced Dacko to officially resign from the presidency at 03:20 WAT (02:20 UTC) on 1 January.[9]
- C Bokassa staged a military coup against the Dacko government on 31 December 1965 – 1 January 1966. After becoming president, Bokassa took control of MESAN and imposed one-party rule under MESAN.
- D Bokassa, then-president for life of the Central African Republic, instituted a new constitution at the session of the MESAN congress and declared the republic a monarchy, the Central African Empire (CAE). Bokassa became the emperor of the CAE as "Bokassa I".[10]
- E By 1979, French support for Bokassa had all but eroded after the government's brutal suppression of rioting in Bangui and massacre of schoolchildren who had protested against wearing the expensive, government-required school uniforms. Dacko, who was Bokassa's personal adviser at the time, managed to leave for Paris where the French convinced him to cooperate in a coup to remove Bokassa from power and restore him to the presidency. The French successfully executed Operation Barracuda on 20–21 September 1979 and installed Dacko as president.[21][22]
- F General Kolingba (who was also the armed forces chief of staff) overthrew Dacko from the presidency in a bloodless coup.[16]
- G On 21 September 1985, Kolingba dissolved the Military Committee for National Recovery,[23] and created the positions of head of state and president.[24]
- H A constitution was adopted by a referendum on 21 November 1986 and Kolingba was elected to a six-year term in office.[11][16]
- I The country held a multiparty presidential election on 22 August and 19 September 1993. Patassé was the candidate from the Movement for the Liberation of the Central African People party and ran on the platform that he would pay the previously withheld salaries to soldiers and civil servants.[25] Patassé defeated Dacko, Kolingba, Bozizé and Abel Goumba to win the election.[26]
- J Bozizé's second coup attempt was successful; he seized power in Bangui on 15 March 2003.[27]
- K Djotodia ousted Bozizé in the 2012–13 conflict; he seized power in Bangui on 24 March 2013.[28][29]
- L Under pressure from other central African heads of state gathered for a crisis summit on the situation in CAR, Djotodia resigned in N'Djamena, Chad on 10 January 2014.[30]
Timeline
edit
Latest election
edit| Candidate | Party | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Faustin-Archange Touadéra | United Hearts Movement | 318,626 | 53.16 | |
| Anicet-Georges Dologuélé | Union for Central African Renewal | 130,017 | 21.69 | |
| Martin Ziguélé | Movement for the Liberation of the Central African People | 45,206 | 7.54 | |
| Désiré Kolingba | Central African Democratic Rally | 22,157 | 3.70 | |
| Crépin Mboli Goumba | PATRIE | 19,271 | 3.21 | |
| Sylvain Patassé | Central Africa New Momentum | 8,760 | 1.46 | |
| Augustin Agou | Renaissance for Sustainable Development | 8,436 | 1.41 | |
| Jean-Serge Bokassa | Kodro Ti Mo Kozo Si | 7,870 | 1.31 | |
| Mahamat Kamoun | Central Africa for All of Us | 7,536 | 1.26 | |
| Alexandre-Ferdinand Nguendet | Rally for the Republic | 6,668 | 1.11 | |
| Karim Meckassoua | Path of Hope | 5,099 | 0.85 | |
| Éloi Anguimaté | National Convention | 5,078 | 0.85 | |
| Catherine Samba-Panza | Independent | 3,710 | 0.62 | |
| Serge Djorie | CAPNCA | 3,392 | 0.57 | |
| Cyriaque Gonda | National Party for a New Central Africa | 2,973 | 0.50 | |
| Aristide Reboas | Christian Democratic Party | 2,454 | 0.41 | |
| Nicolas Tiangaye | Republican Convention for Social Progress | 2,163 | 0.36 | |
| Total | 599,416 | 100.00 | ||
| Valid votes | 599,416 | 91.51 | ||
| Invalid/blank votes | 55,638 | 8.49 | ||
| Total votes | 655,054 | 100.00 | ||
| Registered voters/turnout | 1,858,236 | 35.25 | ||
| Source: Constitutional Court | ||||
See also
editReferences
edit- Specific
- ^ "Salaire des chefs d'Etat africains : Macky Sall parmi les Présidents les plus mal payés..." Dakarbuzz. 8 August 2017. Archived from the original on 19 June 2018.
- ^ "Central African Republic's president vows peace, reforms at inauguration", Reuters, 30 March 2016.
- ^ "Central African Republic 2016 Constitution - Constitute". www.constituteproject.org.
- ^ "Central African Republic approves new constitution, possible third term for Touadera". France 24. 7 August 2023.
- ^ Cook, Candace; Siegle, Joseph. "Circumvention of Term Limits Weakens Governance in Africa". Africa Center for Strategic Studies. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
- ^ Kalck 2005, p. xxxii
- ^ Kalck 2005, p. 198
- ^ Kalck 2005, p. xxxi
- ^ a b Titley 1997, p. 28
- ^ a b Kalck 2005, p. xxxiv
- ^ a b Kalck 2005, p. 199
- ^ Carlson, Peter (19 May 2007), "His Diplomatic Coup: Getting Them on the Record", The Washington Post, retrieved 8 June 2008
- ^ Kalck 2005, p. xxxix
- ^ Kalck 2005, p. 54
- ^ Kalck 2005, p. 155
- ^ a b c Kalck 2005, p. 113
- ^ The World Factbook 2002, Directorate of Intelligence, 2002, ISBN 0-16-067601-0, archived from the original on 18 June 2008
- ^ "Situation "confused" after apparent coup attempt", IRIN, 28 May 2001, retrieved 8 June 2008
- ^ Kalck 2005, p. lxxiii
- ^ "Bozize appoints prime minister", IRIN, 24 March 2003, retrieved 8 June 2008
- ^ Titley 1997, p. 127
- ^ Kalck 2005, p. lxix
- ^ Marsden 1988, p. 810
- ^ Kalck 2005, p. 48
- ^ Appiah & Gates 1999, p. 399
- ^ Kalck 2005, p. xlviii
- ^ "Rebel leader seizes power, suspends constitution", IRIN, 17 March 2003, retrieved 8 June 2008
- ^ "Centrafrique: Michel Djotodia déclare être le nouveau président de la république centrafricaine" (in French). Radio France International. 24 March 2013. Retrieved 24 March 2013.
- ^ Madjiasra Nako; Bate Felix (18 April 2013). "Regional leaders recognise C.African Republic rebel chief". Reuters. Retrieved 27 July 2013.
- ^ "CAR interim President Michel Djotodia resigns". BBC News. 10 January 2014. Retrieved 10 January 2014.
- General
- Appiah, K. Anthony; Gates, Henry Louis Jr., eds. (1999), Africana: The Encyclopedia of the African and African American Experience, New York City: Basic Books, ISBN 0-465-00071-1.
- Kalck, Pierre (2005), Historical Dictionary of the Central African Republic (3rd English ed.), Lanham, Maryland: The Scarecrow Press, ISBN 0-8108-4913-5.
- Marsden, Hilary, ed. (1988), Whitaker's Almanack, 1988, London: J Whitaker and Sons, ISBN 0-85021-178-6.
- Titley, Brian (1997), Dark Age: The Political Odyssey of Emperor Bokassa, Montreal: McGill-Queen's University Press, ISBN 0-7735-1602-6, OCLC 36340842.