# President of Northern Cyprus

The president of Northern Cyprus is the head of state of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. Rauf Denktaş was the first and founding president of Northern Cyprus, and retired in 2005. His position was taken over by Mehmet Ali Talat, followed by Derviş Eroğlu, then Mustafa Akıncı, and the current president, Ersin Tatar.
The president is elected every five years. Presidential elections are held in two rounds if no candidate gains more than 50% of the votes in the first round. It is necessary that the president is originated from the island of Cyprus. The president must have lived in the country for five years, received secondary education and be over 30 years old.
The presidency is not a ceremonial position in the semi-presidential political system of Northern Cyprus. The president reserves the right to dismiss the Assembly of the Republic in case a government cannot be formed within sixty days or three successive governments receive votes of no confidence. They also can preside over the Council of Ministers if they wish to do so, approve the appointments of the judges and president of the Supreme Court and have the right to send laws approved by the Assembly of the Republic to the Supreme Court. The president has also traditionally been the chief negotiator for the resolution of the Cyprus dispute and been responsible for the foreign relations of Northern Cyprus.
The president is represented by the speaker of the Assembly of the Republic when the president is abroad.
The most recent presidential election was held on 11 October 2020. Ersin Tatar is the current president.

## List of presidents of Northern Cyprus (1975–present)
### President of the Turkish Federated State of Cyprus (1975–1983)

The Turkish Federated State of Cyprus was intended as an autonomous part of Cyprus, but was rejected by the government of the Republic of Cyprus.
| No. | Name (Birth–Death) | Portrait | Elected | Term of office | Term of office | Political party |
| 1 | Rauf Denktaş (1924–2012) | | 1976 1981 | 13 February 1975 | 15 November 1983 | Independent (until 11 October 1975)National Unity Party (11 October 1975 onwards) |

### Presidents of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (1983–present)

This list gives all presidents after Northern Cyprus' unilateral declaration of independence in 1983, which followed after the refusal of the government of the Republic of Cyprus to recognize the Turkish Federated State of Cyprus.
| No. | Name (Birth–Death) | Elected | Term of office | Term of office | Political party |
| 1 | Rauf Denktaş (1924–2012) | 1985 1990 1995 2000 | 15 November 1983 | 24 April 2005 | National Unity Party |
| 2 | Mehmet Ali Talat (born 1952) | 2005 | 24 April 2005 | 23 April 2010 | Republican Turkish Party |
| 3 | Derviş Eroğlu (born 1938) | 2010 | 23 April 2010 | 30 April 2015 | National Unity Party |
| 4 | Mustafa Akıncı (born 1947) | 2015 | 30 April 2015 | 23 October 2020 | Independent |
| 5 | Ersin Tatar (born 1960) | 2020 | 23 October 2020 | Incumbent | National Unity Party |

## Latest election

| Candidate | Candidate | Party | First round | First round | Second round | Second round |
| Candidate | Candidate | Party | Votes | % | Votes | % |
| | Ersin Tatar | National Unity Party | 35,825 | 32.35 | 67,322 | 51.69 |
| | Mustafa Akıncı | Independent | 33,053 | 29.84 | 62,910 | 48.31 |
| | Tufan Erhürman | Republican Turkish Party | 24,008 | 21.68 | | |
| | Kudret Özersay | Independent | 6,356 | 5.74 | | |
| | Erhan Arıklı | Rebirth Party | 5,937 | 5.36 | | |
| | Serdar Denktaş | Independent | 4,653 | 4.20 | | |
| | Fuat Türköz Çiner | Nationalist Democracy Party | 327 | 0.30 | | |
| | Arif Salih Kırdağ | Independent | 282 | 0.25 | | |
| | Alpan Uz | Independent | 156 | 0.14 | | |
| | Ahmet Boran | Independent | 83 | 0.07 | | |
| | Mustafa Ulaş | Independent | 69 | 0.06 | | |
| Total | Total | Total | 110,749 | 100.00 | 130,232 | 100.00 |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | Valid votes | 110,749 | 95.66 | 130,232 | 97.24 |
| Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | 5,027 | 4.34 | 3,699 | 2.76 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 115,776 | 100.00 | 133,931 | 100.00 |
| Registered voters/turnout | Registered voters/turnout | Registered voters/turnout | 198,867 | 58.22 | 199,029 | 67.29 |
| Source: Kibris Online, Kibris Online |||||||