President of Liberia

The President of the Republic of Liberia is the head of state and government of Liberia. The president serves as the leader of the executive branch and as commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Liberia.

The current President is Joseph Boakai since January 22, 2024.

History
Between 1847 and 1980, the presidency was exclusively held by Americo-Liberians, the original American settlers of Liberia and their descendants. The original two-party system, with the Republican Party and the True Whig Party, ended in 1878, when the election of Anthony W. Gardiner marked the beginning of 102 years of single-party rule by the True Whigs.

Under the 1986 Constitution, the president is directly elected by eligible voters to a six-year term, which may be renewed once. Overall, 22 individuals have served as president. On January 22, 2018, George Weah was sworn in as the twenty-fifth and current president.

Terms
Under the original 1847 Constitution, the president was elected to a two-year term, which was increased to four years on May 7, 1907. Under this amendment, a new president would serve for eight years and could be re-elected to unlimited four-year terms.

Currently, the president is elected by popular vote to a six-year term and is limited to two terms.

Eligibility
To be eligible for office under the current Constitution, a presidential candidate must:
be a natural born citizen of Liberia (per Art, 27(b) of the Constitution, citizenship is limited to "persons who are Negroes or of Negro descent");
be at least thirty-five years old;
own real property valued at least $25,000;
have resided in Liberia for at least ten years.

List of presidents of Liberia
N Portrait President Term of office Party Took office Left office  1 80px Joseph Jenkins Roberts  Independent2Nathaniel Brander January 7, 1849January 7, 1849Independent(1)80pxJoseph Jenkins RobertsJanuary 7, 1849January 7, 1853Independent3Anthony D. Williams January 7, 1853January 7, 1853Independent(1)80pxJoseph Jenkins RobertsJanuary 7, 1853January 7, 1853Independent4Anthony D. WilliamsJanuary 7, 1853January 7, 1853Independent(1)80pxJoseph Jenkins RobertsJanuary 7, 1853January 7, 1856Independent 580pxStephen Allen BensonIndependent 6 80px Daniel Bashiel Warner   Republican Party 7 80px James Spriggs Payne   Republican Party 8 80px Edward James Roye  October 26 , 1871 True Whig Party9Charles Benedict Dunbar          (1831 —1878)October 26 , 1871November 15,1871Independent10Reginald Sherman   
( 1838 — 1894)November 15,1871November 20,1871Independent11Amos Herring
(1794 — 1890)November 20,1871November 27,1871Independent1280pxJames Skivring Smith November 27,1871True Whig Party (1)80pxJoseph Jenkins RobertsRepublican Party (8) 80px James Spriggs Payne   Republican Party 13 80px Anthony W. Gardiner  Independent14 80px Alfred Francis Russell  True Whig Party15 80px Hilary R. W. Johnson   True Whig Party16  80px Joseph James Cheeseman  True Whig Party  17  80px William D. Coleman True Whig Party 18 80px Garretson W. Gibson True Whig Party 19  80px Arthur BarclayTrue Whig Party 20  80px Daniel Edward HowardTrue Whig Party 21 80px Charles D. B. King    True Whig Party 22 80px Edwin Barclay  True Whig Party23  80px William Tubman| 
|  
|  True Whig Party
|-
!24
| 80px
|  William Tolbert|  
| 
|True Whig Party
|-
! -
| rowspan="2" |  80px
| rowspan="2" |  Samuel Doe| colspan="2" | Chairman of the People's Redemption Council
|Military /
National Democratic Party
|-
! 25
| January 6, 1986
|September 9, 1990
|Military /
National Democratic Party
|-
!26
|
|Prince Johnson                   (b. 1952)
|September 9, 1990
|November 1 , 1990
|MilitaryConflicting claims
|-
!27
|
|Charles Taylor                   (b. 1948)
|November 1 , 1990
|November 7 , 1990
|MilitaryConflicting claims
|-
!28
|
|David Nimley  
(b. 1940)
|November 7 , 1990
|November 9 , 1990
|MilitaryConflicting claims
|-
!29
| 80px
| Amos Sawyer| colspan="2" |  President of the Interim Government of National Unity of LiberiaSeptember 9, 1990 – March 7, 1994
|Liberian People's Party
|-
!30
| 80px
| David D. Kpormakpor| colspan="2" | Chairman of the Council of State of Liberia
|Independent
|-
!31
|80px
|Wilton G. S. Sankawulo| colspan="2" | Chairman of the Council of State of Liberia
|Independent
|-
! 32
|80px
|Ruth Perry| colspan="2" | Chairman of the Council of State of Liberia
|Independent
|-
!  (27)
| 
| Charles Taylor  National Patriotic Party 33 80px Moses Blah   National Patriotic Party34 80px Gyude Bryant Chairman of the Transitional Government of Liberia Liberian Action Party 35 Ellen Johnson Sirleaf   Unity Party36Ellen Johnson SirleafUnity Party37Ellen Johnson SirleafJanuary 22, 2018Unity Party38 80px George Weah January 22, 2024 Congress for Democratic Change39 80pxJoseph Boakai
(born 1944)January 22, 2024IncumbentUnity Party

References

Other websites
 Enno Schulz, "Presidents of Liberia .

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