The president of the Republic of The Gambia is the head of state and head of government of The Gambia. The president leads the executive branch of the government of The Gambia and is the commander-in-chief of the Military of The Gambia. The post was created in 1970, when The Gambia became a republic and has been held by three people: Dawda Jawara, who ruled from 1970 until 1994, Yahya Jammeh, who seized power in a bloodless coup that year and Adama Barrow, who defeated Jammeh in elections held in December 2016.