List of heads of state of Sudan

President of the Republic of Sudan
جمهورية السودان

Incumbent
Omar al-Bashir

since 30 June 1989
Residence Republican Palace
Khartoum, Sudan
Term length 5 years, renewable indefinitely
Inaugural holder Five-member Sovereignty Council (collective presidency)
Formation 1 January 1956
Deputy Vice President of Sudan
Website www.presidency.gov.sd
This article is part of a series on the
politics and government of
Sudan
Constitution

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This is a list of heads of state of Sudan, from the independence of the country in 1956 to the present day.

History of the office

Since the country's independence on 1 January 1956, six individuals (and three multi-member sovereignty councils) have served as head of state of Sudan, currently under the title President of the Republic of Sudan. Prior to independence, Sudan was governed as a condominium by Egypt and the United Kingdom, under the name Anglo-Egyptian Sudan. As such, executive power was vested in a dyarchy consisting of both countries' heads of state – at the time of independence, the Queen of the United Kingdom (Elizabeth II) and the Egyptian Revolutionary Command Council (headed by Gamal Abdel Nasser). Immediately following independence, the role of head of state was filled by a five-member Sovereignty Council, with rival nationalist factions unable to agree on a single candidate. In November 1958, General Ibrahim Abboud led a military coup d'état, assuming the role of head of state as Chairman of the Supreme Council. Assuming the title of president in 1964, he resigned later that year due to general discontent around the rule of the military regime. Abboud was succeeded by a senior civil servant, Sirr Al-Khatim Al-Khalifa, who served as acting president for 18 days before transferring executive authority to a Committee of Sovereignty.

Ismail al-Azhari, the leader of the National Unionist Party, was made president in July 1965, and ruled with limited power until he was deposed in 1969. The military officers responsible for the coup established the National Revolutionary Command Council, chaired by Gaafar Nimeiry. Nimeiry, the leader of the newly formed Sudanese Socialist Union, assumed the position of president in 1971, and subsequently established a single-party state, which existed until 1985, when a group of military officers overthrew his government and established the Transitional Military Council, led by Lieutenant-General Abdel Rahman Swar al-Dahab. Ahmed al-Mirghani succeeded to the relatively powerless position of Chairman of the Supreme Council in 1986, after multi-party elections held that year. He was deposed in a 1989 military coup led by Lieutenant-General Omar al-Bashir. Al-Bashir has served as head of state since the coup, under the title of Chairman of the Revolutionary Command Council for National Salvation to 1993 and as president from 1993 onwards (and from 1996 as the leader of the National Congress Party).

Heads of State of Sudan (1956–Present)

(Dates in italics indicate de facto continuation of office)

# Name Born-Died Took office Left office Political Party
1 Sovereignty Council
Members:
Abdel Fattah Muhammad al-Maghrabi
Muhammad Ahmad Yasin
Ahmad Muhammad Salih
Muhammad Othman al-Dardiri
Siricio Iro Wani
1 January 1956 17 November 1958
Chairman of the Supreme Council
2 Ibrahim Abboud 1900–1983 18 November 1958 31 October 1964 Military
Presidents
Ibrahim Abboud 1900–1983 31 October 1964 16 November 1964[1] Military
Sirr Al-Khatim Al-Khalifa
(acting)
1919–2006 16 November 1964 3 December 1964 National Umma Party
3 First Committee of Sovereignty
Members:
Abdel Halim Muhammad
Tijani al-Mahi
Mubarak Shaddad
Ibrahim Yusuf Sulayman
Luigi Adwok Bong Gicomeho
3 December 1964 10 June 1965
4 Second Committee of Sovereignty
Members:
Ismail al-Azhari
Abdullah al-Fadil al-Mahdi
Luigi Adwok Bong Gicomeho
Abdel Halim Muhammad
Khidr Hamad
10 June 1965 8 July 1965
Chairman of the Sovereignty Council
5 Ismail al-Azhari 1900–1969 8 July 1965 25 May 1969[2] Democratic Unionist Party
Chairman of the National Revolutionary Command Council
6 Gaafar Nimeiry 1930–2009 25 May 1969 12 October 1971[3] Military /
Sudanese Socialist Union
President
Gaafar Nimeiry 1930–2009 12 October 1971 6 April 1985[4] Military /
Sudanese Socialist Union
Commander-in-Chief
7 Abdel Rahman Swar al-Dahab 1934– 6 April 1985 9 April 1985 Military
Chairman of the Transitional Military Council
Abdel Rahman Swar al-Dahab 1934– 9 April 1985 15 December 1985 Military
Chairman of the Transitional Military Council
(7) Abdel Rahman Swar al-Dahab 1934– 15 December 1985 6 May 1986 Military
Chairman of the Supreme Council
8 Ahmed al-Mirghani 1941–2008 6 May 1986 30 June 1989[5] Democratic Unionist Party
Chairman of the Revolutionary Command Council for National Salvation
9 Omar al-Bashir 1944– 30 June 1989 16 October 1993 Military /
National Congress
President
Omar al-Bashir 1944– 16 October 1993 Incumbent Military /
National Congress

Latest election

Candidate Party Votes %
Omar al-BashirNational Congress 5,252,47894.05
Fadl el-Sayed ShuiabFederal Truth Party 79,7791.43
Fatima Abdel MahmoudSudanese Socialist Democratic Union47,6530.85
Mohamed Al HassanNational Reform Party42,3990.76
Abdul Mahmoud Abdul Jabar RahamtallaUnion of the Nation's Forces41,1340.74
Hamdi Hassan AhmedIndependent18,0430.32
Mohamed Ahmed Abdul Gadir Al ArbabIndependent16,9660.30
Yasser Yahiya Salih Abdul GadirIndependent16,6090.30
Khairi BakhitIndependent11,8520.21
Adel Dafalla Jabir Independent9,4350.17
Mohamed Awad Al BarowIndependent9,3880.17
Asad Al Nil Adel Yassin Al SaafiIndependent9,3590.17
Alam Al Huda Ahmed Osman Mohamed AliIndependent8,1330.15
Ahmed Al Radhi Jadalla SalemIndependent7,7510.14
Isaam Al Ghali Tajj Eddin AliIndependent7,5870.14
Omar Awad Al Karim Hussein AliIndependent6,2970.11
Invalid/blank votes506,549
Total6,091,412100
Registered voters/turnout13,126,98946.40
Source: NEC

See also

Notes

  1. Resigned after mass protests
  2. Deposed in the 1969 coup d'état
  3. Briefly interrupted during the 19-22 July 1971 coup d'état
  4. Deposed in the 1985 coup d'état
  5. Deposed in the 1989 coup d'état

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