President for life is a title assumed by or granted to some presidents to extend their tenure up until their death. The title sometimes confers on the holder the right to nominate or appoint a successor. The usage of the title of "president for life" rather than a traditionally autocratic title implies the subversion of liberal democracy by the titleholder (although republics need not be democratic per se). Indeed, sometimes a president for life can proceed to establish a self-proclaimed monarchy, such as Jean-Jacques Dessalines and Henry Christophe in Haiti.
A president for life may be regarded as a de facto autocrat.[1] [2]
Many leaders who proclaimed themselves president for life have not in fact successfully gone on to serve a life term. Most were deposed before they died, and others achieved a lifetime presidency by being assassinated while in office. However, some have managed to rule until their natural deaths, including José Gaspar Rodríguez de Francia of Paraguay, Alexandre Pétion and François Duvalier of Haiti, Rafael Carrera of Guatemala, Josip Broz Tito of Yugoslavia, and Saparmurat Niyazov of Turkmenistan. Others made unsuccessful attempts to have themselves named president for life, such as Mobutu Sese Seko of Zaire in 1972.[3]
Some long-serving authoritarian presidents are mistakenly described as presidents for life. They were never officially granted life terms and, in fact, stood periodically for reelection. However, in most cases, these were sham elections.[4] [5] [6]
In the film Escape from L.A., the President played by Cliff Robertson is given a life term by a constitutional amendment after an earthquake ravages Los Angeles and leads to the President's shocking electoral victory. At the end of the film, Snake played by Kurt Russell puts an end to his regime when he uses an EMP aiming device remote ending all governments including that of his dictatorship.
Note: The first date listed in each entry is the date of proclamation of the status as President for Life.
| Portrait | Name | Country | Title | Took office | Left office | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Toussaint Louverture | Governor for Life of Saint-Domingue | 1801 | 1802 | Deposed 1802, died in exile in France 1803. | |||
| Henri Christophe | President for Life of Haiti (Northern) | 1807 | 1811 | Became King 1811, committed suicide while reigning 1820. | |||
| José Gaspar Rodríguez de Francia | Perpetual Supreme Dictator of Paraguay | 1816 | 1840 | Died in office 1840. | |||
| Alexandre Pétion | President for Life of Haiti (Southern) | 1816 | 1818 | Died in office 1818. | |||
| Jean-Pierre Boyer | President for Life of Haiti | 1818 | 1843 | Became President for Life immediately upon assuming the office because Alexandre Pétion's constitution provided for a life presidency for all his successors, deposed 1843, died 1850. | |||
| Antonio López de Santa Anna | (Second Federal Republic) | President for Life of Mexico | 1853 | 1855 | Resigned 1855, died 1876. | ||
| Rafael Carrera | President for Life of Guatemala | 1854 | 1865 | Died in office 1865. | |||
| Adolf Hitler | (Third Reich) | Chancellor and Führer for life | 1934 | 1945 | Committed suicide in office 1945. | ||
| Tupua Tamasese Meaʻole | O le Ao o le Malo for Life of Samoa | 1962 | 1963 | Died in office 1963, elected to serve alongside Tanumafili II (see below). The position of O le Ao o le Malo (head of state) is ceremonial; executive power is exercised by the Prime Minister, and Samoa is a parliamentary democracy.[7] | |||
| Malietoa Tanumafili II | 2007 | Died in office 2007, elected to serve alongside Meaʻole (see above). | |||||
| Sukarno | (Guided Democracy era) | Supreme Commander, Great Leader of Revolution, Mandate Holder of the Provisional People's Consultative Assembly, and President for Life of Indonesia | 1963 | 1966 | Designated as President for Life according to the Ketetapan MPRS No. III/MPRS/1963,[8] life term removed 1966, deposed 1967, died under house arrest 1970. | ||
| Kwame Nkrumah | President for Life of Ghana | 1964 | 1966 | Ousted in 1966, died in exile in Romania 1972. | |||
| François "Papa Doc" Duvalier | President for Life of Haiti | 1964 | 1971 | Died in office 1971, named his son as his successor (see below).[9] | |||
| Jean-Claude "Baby Doc" Duvalier | 1971 | 1986 | Named by his father as successor (see above), deposed 1986, died 2014. | ||||
| Hastings Banda | President for Life of Malawi | 1971 | 1993 | Life term removed 1993, voted out of office 1994, died 1997. | |||
| Jean-Bédel Bokassa | President for Life of the Central African Republic | 1972 | 1976 | Became Emperor 1976 (crowned 1977), deposed 1979, died 1996. | |||
| Francisco Macías Nguema | President for Life of Equatorial Guinea | 1972 | 1979 | Deposed and executed 1979. | |||
| Ferdinand Marcos | (Martial law regime) | President for Life of the Philippines | 1973 | 1981 | Life term removed 1981, deposed 1986, died in exile 1989. | ||
| Josip Broz Tito | President for Life of Yugoslavia | 1974 | 1980 | Appointed as President for Life according to the 1974 Constitution, died in office 1980. | |||
| Habib Bourguiba | President for Life of Tunisia | 1975 | 1987 | Deposed 1987, died under house arrest 2000. | |||
| Idi Amin | (Second Republic) | President for Life of Uganda | 1976 | 1979 | Deposed 1979, died in exile in Saudi Arabia 2003. | ||
| Lennox Sebe |  South Africa | President for Life of Ciskei | 1983 | 1990 | Deposed 1990, died 1994. | ||
| Saparmurat Niyazov | President for Life of Turkmenistan | 1999 | 2006 | Died in office 2006. |