10 World Longest Serving Leaders

10 World Longest Serving Leaders

1. Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah     Brunei  1967

General Haji Sir Hassanal Bolkiah Mu'izzaddin Waddaulah GCB GCMG (born 15 July 1946) is the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam, the 29th Sultan of Brunei and the first Prime Minister of Brunei Darussalam. He was the eldest son of Omar Ali Saifuddien III, the 28th Sultan of Brunei, and Pengiran Anak Damit.

2. Colonel Muammar Gaddafi Libya 1969

Muammar Muhammad al-Gaddafi; (born 7 June 1942) is a Libyan politician and revolutionary, who has led the Libyan state since he overthrew King Idris in a 1969 bloodless coup and established the Libyan Arab Republic. His almost 42 years in power make him one of the longest-serving rulers in history. Gaddafi incorporated Arab socialist and Arab nationalist ideas into his political philosophy, which he published in The Green Book in 1975. In 1979, he relinquished the title of prime minister, and was thereafter called "The Brother Leader" or "The Guide" in Libya's Socialist Revolution.

3. Sultan Qaboos bin Said al Said Oman 1970

Qaboos bin Said Al Said; (born 18 November 1940) is the Sultan of Oman and Dependencies. He rose to power after overthrowing his father, Sa‘id ibn Taymur, in a palace coup in 1970. He is the 14th-generation descendant of the founder of the Al Bu Sa'idi dynasty.

4. Prime Minister Khalifa ibn Salman Al Khalifa Bahrain  1971

Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa (born 24 November 1935) is the Prime Minister of Bahrain since 1971, hence is the longest-serving unelected prime minister in the world. He still retains his post, although under the 2002 Constitution he has lost some of his power on paper, with King Hamad having the authority to appoint and (along with the Bahraini parliament) dismiss ministers. He is known to be the richest member of the ruling family and one of the biggest merchants in Bahrain.

5. President Jos Angola 1979

José Eduardo dos Santos (born August 28, 1942) in Sambizanga, Luanda, Angola, then a Portuguese territory), is the second and current President of Angola, having served in that position since 1979. As president, José Eduardo dos Santos is also the commander in chief of the Angolan Armed Forces (FAA) and president of the MPLA (People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola), the party that has been ruling Angola since independence in 1975.

6. President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo Equatorial Guinea 1979 

Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo (born 5 June 1942) is the President of Equatorial Guinea, having served since 1979, and the Chairperson of the African Union. He deposed Francisco Macías Nguema on 3 August 1979 in a bloody coup d'état. Macías was placed on trial for his activities over the previous decade and sentenced to death. His activities had included the genocide of the Bubi. He was executed on 29 September 1979 by firing squad.

7. President Paul Biya     Cameroon  1982 

Paul Biya (born Paul Barthélemy Biya'a bi Mvondo, 13 February 1933) has been the President of Cameroon since 6 November 1982. Since the death of Omar Bongo in 2009, Biya has been the longest-sitting national leader in Sub-Saharan Africa.

8. King Mswati III Swaziland  1986 

Mswati III (born Makhosetive Dlamini on April 19, 1968) is the King of Swaziland and head of the Swazi Royal Family. In 1986, he succeeded his father Sobhuza II as ruler of the southern African kingdom. He is generally considered to be one of the last absolute monarchs in the world, as he has the authority to appoint the country's Prime Minister, members of the cabinet, and the judiciary. However, he is bound to a certain degree by Swazi traditions and he does not have the authority to choose his heir.

9. President Yoweri Museveni Uganda 1986 

Yoweri Kaguta Museveni (born c. 1944) is a Ugandan politician and statesman. He has been President of Uganda since 26 January 1986. Museveni was involved in the war that deposed Idi Amin Dada, ending his rule in 1979, and in the rebellion that subsequently led to the demise of the Milton Obote regime in 1985. With the notable exception of northern areas, Museveni has brought relative stability and economic growth to a country that has endured decades of government mismanagement, rebel activity and civil war. His tenure has also witnessed one of the most effective national responses to HIV/AIDS in Africa.

10. President Blaise Compaoré Burkina Faso 1987

A presidential election was held in Burkina Faso on November 13, 2005. The incumbent president, Blaise Compaoré, was re-elected with about 80% of the vote. Compaoré has been in power since October 1987, was first elected in 1991, and was re-elected in 1998. In August 2005, he announced his intention to run for a third term as President. Opposition politicians argued that Compaoré could not run in the election because a constitutional amendment passed in 2000 limits a president to two terms. The amendment also reduces the term length from seven to five years. Compaoré's supporters, however, argued that the amendment could not be applied retroactively. In October 2005, the Constitutional Council ruled that because Compaoré was President in 2000, the amendment would not apply until the end of his current mandate, thereby allowing his candidacy in the 2005 election.