State President of South Africa facts for kids

Quick facts for kids State President of the Republic of South Africa
Standard of the State President (1984–1994)
Longest serving Jim Fouché 10 April 1968 – 9 April 1975
Style	The Honourable (until 1985)
Abbreviation	SP – the same abbreviation in both English (State President) and Afrikaans (Staatspresident)
Residence	Tuynhuys, Cape Town
Appointer	Parliament of South Africa as an electoral college – House of Assembly of South Africa and the Senate of South Africa meeting jointly for this purpose.
Term length	Seven years, nonrenewable (until 1984) Duration of Parliament (normally five years) (1984–94)
Precursor	Monarch of South Africa
Formation	31 May 1961 (ceremonial) 3 September 1984 (executive)
First holder	Charles Robberts Swart
Final holder	Frederik Willem de Klerk
Abolished	10 May 1994
Succession	President of South Africa
Deputy	Vice State President of South Africa (1981–1984)

The flag used by the ceremonial State President from 1961 to 1984.

The State President of the Republic of South Africa was the leader of South Africa from 1961 to 1994. This important job started when South Africa became a republic on 31 May 1961. Before this, the country was part of the Commonwealth of Nations, and Queen Elizabeth II was the Queen of South Africa. When South Africa became a republic, the role of the Governor-General of South Africa was removed.

From 1961 to 1984, the State President mostly had a symbolic role. This means they performed official duties but didn't make big decisions. However, after some changes in the law in 1984, the State President became the main leader. This person was then both the head of state and the head of government.

The State President was chosen by the Parliament of South Africa. This included both the Senate of South Africa and the House of Assembly of South Africa working together.

The job of State President ended in 1994. This happened when Apartheid ended, and South Africa moved to a new democratic system. Since then, the country's leader is simply called the President of South Africa.

The Ceremonial Role (1961–1984)

The Tuynhuys building in Cape Town, which was an office for the State President.

For a long time, the National Party, which was in power, wanted South Africa to be a republic. In 1960, they held a vote to ask people if they wanted to become a republic. A small majority of white voters, about 52 percent, voted yes. They wanted to stop having a monarchy.

The Republic of South Africa was officially created on 31 May 1961. Charles Robberts Swart, who was the last Governor-General, became the first State President. The name 'State President' was used before for leaders of the old Boer Republics. Like those leaders, the State President wore a special sash with the country's coat of arms.

The State President was chosen for a single seven-year term by the Parliament of South Africa. They could not be chosen again. The National Party decided that the State President would not have much power. This was to reassure English-speaking people who were against becoming a republic. So, the State President mainly did ceremonial tasks. They had to follow the advice of the Prime Minister and the cabinet.

In reality, the job of State President was often given to retired National Party ministers. This was similar to how the Governor-General's job had been since 1948. Because of this, all State Presidents from 1961 to 1984 were white, Afrikaner men who were over 60 years old.

The powers of the State President during this time were very similar to those of the Governor-General of South Africa.

The Executive Role (1984–1994)

In 1984, after new laws were passed, the State President's job changed. It became an executive role, meaning the person in this job had real power, like the President in the United States. The job of Prime Minister was removed, and its powers were given to the State President.

The State President was chosen by a special group of 88 members. These members came from the Tricameral Parliament, which had three parts:

• 50 white members
• 25 Coloured members
• 13 Indian members

These members were chosen by their own racial groups within the Tricameral Parliament. The State President held office for the length of the Parliament, which was usually five years. P. W. Botha, who was the last Prime Minister, became the first executive State President. He took over from Marais Viljoen, who was the last ceremonial State President.

The State President now had a lot of power. They were in charge of "national" matters, like how the country dealt with other countries and race relations. The State President also led the President's Council. This group helped solve disagreements between the three parts of Parliament about laws. The Council had 60 members. The State President directly chose 25 of these members.

Even though these changes were meant to share power, the way the electoral college and President's Council were set up meant that the white chamber almost always had the final say. This meant that real power stayed with white people. In practice, it stayed with the National Party, which had many members in the white chamber. Since Botha was the leader of the National Party, he held most of the government's power.

Botha stepped down in 1989. F. W. de Klerk took over from him. De Klerk then led the country through the big changes that ended white minority rule in 1994.

End of White Minority Rule

In 1994, South Africa adopted a new constitution. This constitution was for all races. Under this new system, the leader of the country is simply called the President. However, even before 1994, many countries outside South Africa already called the State President just "President."

Nelson Mandela, the leader of the African National Congress, became the first President of South Africa under the new constitution on 10 May 1994.

List of State Presidents of South Africa

Political parties

      National Party

Symbols

      and "acting" denotes acting president

No.	Portrait	Name (Birth–Death)	Term of office			Political party		Elected
			Took office	Left office	Time in office
State presidents as head of state (Ceremonial, 1961–1984)
1		Charles Robberts Swart (1894–1982)	31 May 1961	31 May 1967	6 years		National Party	1961
—		Theophilus Ebenhaezer Dönges (1898–1968)	Elected, but did not take office because of illness				National Party	1967
—		Jozua François Naudé (1889–1969) acting	1 June 1967	10 April 1968	314 days		National Party	—
2		Jacobus Johannes Fouché (1898–1980)	10 April 1968	9 April 1975	6 years, 364 days		National Party	1968
—		Johannes de Klerk (1903–1979) acting	9 April 1975	19 April 1975	10 days		National Party	—
3		Nicolaas Johannes Diederichs (1903–1978)	19 April 1975	21 August 1978 (died in office)	3 years, 124 days		National Party	1975
—		Marais Viljoen (1915–2007) acting	21 August 1978	10 October 1978	50 days		National Party	—
4		Balthazar Johannes Vorster (1915–1983)	10 October 1978	4 June 1979 (resigned)	237 days		National Party	1978
—		Marais Viljoen (1915–2007)	4 June 1979	19 June 1979	15 days		National Party	–
5			19 June 1979	3 September 1984	5 years, 91 days			1979
State presidents as head of state and government (Executive, 1984–1994)
—		Pieter Willem Botha (1916–2006)	3 September 1984	14 September 1984	11 days		National Party	–
1			14 September 1984	14 August 1989 (resigned)	4 years, 334 days			1984
—		Jan Christiaan Heunis (1927–2006) acting	19 January 1989	15 March 1989	55 days		National Party	–
—		Frederik Willem de Klerk (1936–2021)	14 August 1989	20 September 1989	37 days		National Party	–
2			20 September 1989	10 May 1994	4 years, 232 days			1989

Timeline of State Presidents

Related Topics

• State President of the South African Republic
• State President of the Orange Free State
• Governor-General of the Union of South Africa
• President of South Africa
• Prime Minister of South Africa
• Vice State President of South Africa