How Many Presidents Has Egypt Had?

Egypt has had just six presidents since it became a republic in 1953 — a short list for seven decades, because most of them held the office for a very long time. Five of the six came from the military. The current president, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, a former army chief and defence minister, has held office since 2014 and was re-elected for a third term in December 2023.

6presidents since Egypt became a republic in 1953

Correct as of June 2026.

Few presidents, long reigns

Six names in seven decades. Switch the rule to see why the list is so short.

6Presidents since 1953

Just six people have been president since Egypt was declared a republic in 1953: Naguib, Nasser, Sadat, Mubarak, Morsi and el-Sisi.

Why the list is so short

Egypt became a republic in 1953, when the Free Officers movement overthrew the monarchy of King Farouk. In the seven decades since, only six people have held the presidency — a remarkably short list for so long a span. The reason is the length of the reigns: most Egyptian presidents stayed in office for many years, even decades.

Three men account for most of it. Gamal Abdel Nasser, Anwar Sadat and Hosni Mubarak held the presidency in an unbroken line from 1954 to 2011 — 57 years between just three people. Where some countries cycle through a leader every few years, Egypt's office, for most of its history, simply did not change hands.

An office shaped by the armed forces

The other defining feature of the list is the uniform behind it. Five of the six presidents came from the military: Naguib, Nasser and Sadat were among the Free Officers; Mubarak commanded the air force; and el-Sisi was army chief and defence minister before taking office. The armed forces have been the central institution behind the Egyptian presidency since its founding.

The single exception proves the rule. Mohamed Morsi, a Muslim Brotherhood leader, won Egypt's first genuinely competitive presidential election in 2012, after the 2011 uprising removed Mubarak. He governed for about a year before the military, led by his own defence minister Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, removed him in 2013. El-Sisi then won the presidency himself in 2014.

The full list, in order

All six from Mohamed Naguib to Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. The list is short because the tenures were long — and almost uniformly military, with Mohamed Morsi the lone civilian who held the office for barely a year.

Every president, in order

All six since 1953. Tap a name for the detail; filter to see the military line and its single civilian exception.

Showing 6 holders

How the terms have changed

The rules of the office have shifted over time. Under Nasser, Sadat and Mubarak, presidents were typically confirmed in single-candidate referendums rather than contested elections, which helped keep the same leaders in place for decades. Multi-candidate presidential elections only became the norm after 2005, and a genuinely competitive one only in 2012.

The term length has changed too. A 2019 constitutional amendment extended the presidential term from four years to six and adjusted the limits, allowing el-Sisi to run again; he was re-elected for a third term in December 2023. The short list of six names, then, is partly a story about how long each holder has been able to stay.

How much power is in the job?

The Egyptian presidency is a strong, centralised office historically anchored in the military — which is much of why, in seventy years, only six people have held it.

How much power does the president actually have?

The title is the easy part. The real measure is how hard the holder is to remove.

Head of state too?

Yes. The Egyptian president is head of state, head of the executive, and supreme commander of the armed forces.

How they get the job

By national election. For decades this took the form of single-candidate referendums; competitive multi-candidate elections became the norm only after 2005.

Length of term

Six years since a 2019 amendment (previously four), with term limits that have been altered more than once.

Can be sacked mid-term?

Rarely by constitutional means. In practice, Egyptian presidencies have ended by death, assassination, or popular and military upheaval.

Role of the military

Central. The armed forces are the institution behind the office, and five of the six presidents rose through their ranks.

The Egyptian presidency is a highly centralised office, historically backed by the military and held by its occupants for long stretches. The short list of six names reflects exactly that: an office that, for most of its history, has changed hands slowly.

In office now: Abdel Fattah el-Sisi (military background)

In office since 8 June 2014, after leading the removal of Mohamed Morsi in 2013. He was re-elected for a third term in December 2023, following a 2019 amendment that extended presidential terms to six years.

Office-holder correct as of June 2026.

See how this compares

Egypt has had just six presidents in seventy years, almost all from the military — a very different rhythm from the fast-changing premierships elsewhere. Compare the office on the map.

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A quick quiz. The counting questions catch most people.

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Which president nationalised the Suez Canal in 1956?

Sources

Wikipedia — List of presidents of Egypt and President of Egypt (six presidents since 1953; el-Sisi in office since 8 June 2014)
Britannica — list of presidents of Egypt; Nasser, Sadat and Mubarak
Reporting on the December 2023 election (el-Sisi's third term) and the 2019 constitutional amendment extending the term to six years
Wikipedia — Anwar Sadat (assassinated 1981) and Hosni Mubarak (resigned 2011)
Natural Earth public-domain country data (via world-atlas), used on the Leaders of the World map

Six presidents in seven decades, five of them from the army, three of them holding the office for 57 years between them — in Egypt, the short list is the whole point.