# List of heads of state of the Bahamas

This is a list of the heads of state of The Bahamas, from the independence of The Bahamas in 1973 to the present day.
From 1973 the head of state under the Bahamas Independence Act 1973 is the Monarch of The Bahamas, currently King Charles III, who is also the Monarch of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms. The King is represented in The Bahamas by a Governor-General.

## Monarch (1973–present)

The succession to the throne is the same as the succession to the British throne.
| No. | Portrait | Monarch (Birth–Death) | Reign | Reign | Reign | Royal House | Prime Minister |
| No. | Portrait | Monarch (Birth–Death) | Reign start | Reign end | Duration | Royal House | Prime Minister |
| 1 | | Queen Elizabeth (1926–2022) | 10 July 1973 | 8 September 2022 | 69 years, 60 days | Windsor | Pindling Ingraham Christie Ingraham Christie Minnis Davis |
| 2 | | King Charles (born 1948) | 8 September 2022 | Incumbent | 2 years, 182 days | Windsor | Davis |

### Governor-General

The Governor-General is the representative of the Monarch in the Bahamas and exercises most of the powers of the Monarch. The Governor-General is appointed for an indefinite term, serving at the pleasure of the Monarch. After the passage of the Statute of Westminster 1931, the Governor-General is appointed solely on the advice of the Cabinet of the Bahamas without the involvement of the British government. In the event of a vacancy the Chief Justice served as Officer Administering the Government.

#### Symbols

    ^† Died in office.
| No. | Portrait | Name (Birth–Death) | Term of office | Term of office | Term of office | Monarch |
| No. | Portrait | Name (Birth–Death) | Took office | Left office | Time in office | Monarch |
| 1 | | Sir John Paul (1916–2004) | 10 July 1973 | 31 July 1973 | 21 days | Elizabeth II |
| 2 | | Sir Milo Butler (1906–1979) | 1 August 1973 | 22 January 1979 | 5 years, 174 days | Elizabeth II |
| – | | Doris Sands Johnson (1921–1983) | 22 January 1979 | 22 January 1979 | 0 days | Elizabeth II |
| – | | Sir Gerald Cash (1917–2003) | 22 January 1979 | 23 September 1979 | 244 days | Elizabeth II |
| 3 | | Sir Gerald Cash (1917–2003) | 23 September 1979 | 25 June 1988 | 8 years, 276 days | Elizabeth II |
| – | | Sir Henry Milton Taylor (1903–1994) | 26 June 1988 | 28 February 1991 | 2 years, 247 days | Elizabeth II |
| 4 | | Sir Henry Milton Taylor (1903–1994) | 28 February 1991 | 1 January 1992 | 307 days | Elizabeth II |
| 5 | | Sir Clifford Darling (1922–2011) | 2 January 1992 | 2 January 1995 | 3 years, 0 days | Elizabeth II |
| 6 | | Sir Orville Turnquest (b. 1929) | 3 January 1995 | 13 November 2001 | 6 years, 314 days | Elizabeth II |
| – | | Dame Ivy Dumont (b. 1930) | 13 November 2001 | 1 January 2002 | 49 days | Elizabeth II |
| 7 | | Dame Ivy Dumont (b. 1930) | 1 January 2002 | 30 November 2005 | 3 years, 333 days | Elizabeth II |
| – | | Paul Adderley (1928–2012) | 1 December 2005 | 1 February 2006 | 62 days | Elizabeth II |
| 8 | | Arthur Dion Hanna (1928–2021) | 1 February 2006 | 14 April 2010 | 4 years, 72 days | Elizabeth II |
| 9 | | Sir Arthur Foulkes (b. 1928) | 14 April 2010 | 8 July 2014 | 4 years, 85 days | Elizabeth II |
| 10 | | Dame Marguerite Pindling (b. 1932) | 8 July 2014 | 28 June 2019 | 4 years, 355 days | Elizabeth II |
| 11 | | Sir Cornelius A. Smith (b. 1937) | 28 June 2019 | 31 August 2023 | 4 years, 64 days | Elizabeth II Charles III |
| 12 | | Dame Cynthia A. Pratt (b. 1945) | 31 August 2023 | Incumbent | 1 year, 190 days | Charles III |

## Standards

* Governor-General's Standard