Lists of state leaders by age


Fuad II of Egypt 1952.jpg Dr HK Banda, first president of Malawi.jpg
Since 1900, the youngest serving state leader has been 192-day-old Fuad II, King of Egypt (left), while the oldest has been 96-year-old Hastings Banda, President of Malawi (right).

This article contains various lists of state leaders organized by age, defined as heads of state and/or heads of government.

10 oldest serving state leaders

 
Elizabeth II, currently the oldest serving state leader

People currently serving as head of state and/or head of government, a party leader of a one-party state, or a representative of a head of state.

Rank Name Born Age Position Assumed office
1 Elizabeth II (1926-04-21)21 April 1926 98 years, 7 days Queen of the United Kingdom
and other Commonwealth realms[1]
1952
2 Paul Biya (1933-02-13)13 February 1933 91 years, 75 days President of Cameroon 1982[2]
3 Michel Aoun (1933-09-30)30 September 1933 90 years, 211 days President of Lebanon 2016[3]
4 Mahmoud Abbas (1935-11-15)15 November 1935 88 years, 165 days President of the Palestinian National Authority,
President of the State of Palestine
2005
5 Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (1935-12-31)31 December 1935 88 years, 119 days King of Saudi Arabia,
Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia[4]
2015
6 Francis (1936-12-17)17 December 1936 87 years, 133 days Pope of the Holy See,
Sovereign of the Vatican City State
2013
7 Harald V (1937-02-21)21 February 1937 87 years, 67 days King of Norway 1991
8 Cornelius A. Smith (1937-04-07)7 April 1937 87 years, 21 days Governor-General of the Bahamas 2019
9 Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah (1937-06-25)25 June 1937 86 years, 308 days Emir of Kuwait 2020
10 Ali Khamenei (1939-04-19)19 April 1939 85 years, 9 days Supreme Leader of Iran 1989[5]

10 oldest serving state leaders of all time

Rank Name Position Last year in office
(reason term ended)
Age at end
1–2 Giovanni Paolo Lascaris Grand Master of the Knights Hospitaller 1657 (death) 97 years, 47 days
Enrico Dandolo Doge of Venice 1205 (death) c. 97–98 years[6]
3 Abdul Momin Sultan of Brunei 1885 (death) 96 years, 148 days or 97 years, 8 days[7]
4 Hastings Banda President of Malawi 1994 (presidency for life revoked, defeated in re-election) 96 years, 98 days
5 Prem Tinsulanonda Regent of Thailand 2016 (term ended) 96 years, 97 days
6 Elizabeth II Queen of the United Kingdom
and other Commonwealth realms
[1]
Incumbent 98 years, 7 days
7 George Tupou I King of Tonga 1893 (death) 95 years, 76 days
8 Mahathir Mohamad Prime Minister of Malaysia 2020 (resigned) 94 years, 235 days
9 Nicolò da Ponte Doge of Venice 1585 (death) 94 years, 196 days
10 Malietoa Tanumafili II O le Ao o le Malo of Samoa 2007 (death) 94 years, 127 days

Longest-lived state leaders

The following lists are the top ten all-time state leaders and the top ten living.

Top ten since 1800

 
Chau Sen Cocsal Chhum, the longest-lived state leader
Rank Name Position Birth Death Age
1 Chau Sen Cocsal Chhum Prime Minister of Cambodia (1962) 1905 2009 103 years, 143 days
2 Celâl Bayar Prime Minister of Turkey (1937–1939) 1883 1986 103 years, 98 days
President of Turkey (1950–1960)
3 Antoine Pinay Prime Minister of France (1952–1953) 1891 1994 102 years, 348 days
4 André Prunet-Foch French Viguier in Andorra (1977–1980) 1914 2017 102 years, 211 days
5 Naruhiko Higashikuni Prime Minister of Japan (1945) 1887 1990 102 years, 48 days
1–6 Ek Yi Oun Prime Minister of Cambodia (1958) 1910 2013 102 years, 1 day to 103 years, 364 days[8]
7 Babiker Awadalla Prime Minister of Sudan (1969) 1917 2019 101 years, 321 days
8 Willem Drees Prime Minister of the Netherlands (1948–1958) 1886 1988 101 years, 314 days
9 Đỗ Mười Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Vietnam (1988–1991) 1917 2018 101 years, 241 days
General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (1991–1997)
10 Zhang Qun Premier of the Republic of China (1947–1948) 1889 1990 101 years, 219 days

Top ten living

 
Francisco Morales-Bermúdez, the oldest-living state leader
Rank Name Position Birth Age
1 Francisco Morales-Bermúdez Prime Minister of Peru (1975) (1921-10-04)4 October 1921 102 years, 207 days
President of Peru (1975–1980)
2 Luis Echeverría President of Mexico (1970–1976) (1922-01-17)17 January 1922 102 years, 102 days
3 Khamtai Siphandone Prime Minister of Laos (1991–1998) (1924-02-08)8 February 1924 100 years, 80 days
Chairman of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party (1992–2006)
President of Laos (1998–2006)
4 Tomiichi Murayama Prime Minister of Japan (1994–1996) (1924-03-03)3 March 1924 100 years, 56 days
5 Jimmy Carter President of the United States (1977–1981) (1924-10-01)1 October 1924 99 years, 210 days
6 Lubomír Štrougal Prime Minister of Czechoslovakia (1970–1988) (1924-10-19)19 October 1924 99 years, 192 days
7 Guillermo Rodríguez President of Ecuador (1972–1976) (1924-11-04)4 November 1924 99 years, 176 days
8 Ali Hassan Mwinyi President of Tanzania (1985–1995) (1925-05-08)8 May 1925 98 years, 356 days
National Chairman of the Chama Cha Mapinduzi (1990–1992)
9 Giorgio Napolitano President of Italy (2006–2015) (1925-06-29)29 June 1925 98 years, 304 days
10 Mahathir Mohamad Prime Minister of Malaysia (1981–2003, 2018–2020) (1925-07-10)10 July 1925 98 years, 293 days

10 youngest serving state leaders

 
Gabriel Boric is set to become the second youngest state leader in the world and youngest president in Chile's history.
Rank Name Position Birth Age
1 Giacomo Simoncini Captain Regent of San Marino (since 2021) 30 November 1994 29 years, 150 days
2 Gabriel Boric President of Chile (since 2022) 11 February 1986 38 years, 77 days
3 Sanna Marin Prime Minister of Finland (since 2019) 16 November 1985 38 years, 164 days
4 Mahamat Déby Chairman of the Transitional Military Council of Chad (since 2021) 1 January 1984 40 years, 118 days
5 Kim Jong-un Supreme Leader of North Korea[9] (since 2011) 8 January 1983[10] 41 years, 111 days[10]
5–6 Assimi Goïta Interim President of Mali (since 2021)[11] 1983 40 years, 119 days to
41 years, 118 days
7 Irakli Garibashvili Prime Minister of Georgia (since 2021)[12] 28 June 1982 41 years, 305 days
8 Nayib Bukele President of El Salvador (since 2019) 24 July 1981 42 years, 279 days
9 Jacinda Ardern Prime Minister of New Zealand (since 2017) 26 July 1980 43 years, 277 days
10 Luvsannamsrain Oyun-Erdene Prime Minister of Mongolia (since 2021) 29 June 1980 43 years, 304 days

10 youngest state leaders (since 1942)

File:Duvalier father and son.png
Jean-Claude Duvalier (seated), the youngest non-royal state leader since 1900

Leaders still serving are highlighted in italicized bold.

Rank Name Position Age (when they took office)
1 Fuad II King of Egypt 192 days
2 Gyanendra King of Nepal 3 years, 123 days
3 Faisal II King of Iraq 3 years, 337 days
4 Simeon II Tsar of Bulgaria 6 years, 73 days
5 Hussein King of Jordan 16 years, 271 days
6 Jigme Singye Wangchuck King of Bhutan 16 years, 256 days
7 Mswati III [13] King of Eswatini [14] 18 years, 6 days
8 Bhumibol Adulyadej King of Thailand 18 years, 186 days
9 Ntare V King of Burundi 18 years, 218 days
10 Jean-Claude Duvalier President of Haiti 19 years, 293 days

Notes

  1. 1.0 1.1 In 1952, Princess Elizabeth acceded as the monarch of seven Commonwealth realms. She currently reigns as Queen of 16 sovereign states including the United Kingdom. From 1957–1983, most of her British colonies attained independence, and some joined the other realms in different years; most states ceased to be a realm upon becoming republics.
  2. Previously served as Prime Minister of Cameroon from 1975–1982.
  3. Previously served as President of the Council of Ministers of Lebanon from 1988–1990.
  4. Since the reign of Faisal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (1964–1975), the office of prime minister has been held by the king simultaneously.
  5. Previously served as President of Iran from 1981–1989.
  6. None of the earlier chronicles and contemporary witnesses give his exact age, only mentioning that he was very old. The commonly given birth year of c. 1107 is based on the account of Marino Sanuto the Younger (1466–1536) three centuries later, who stated that Dandolo was eighty-five when he assumed the throne in 1192. (See Madden. Enrico Dandolo and the Rise of Venice. p. 92.) As Dandalo died on June 1, 1205, he was 97 or 98 at death if indeed born in 1107.
  7. Born "before 21 May 1788", exact date unknown; died on May 30, 1885, his age should be between 96 years, 148 days or 97 years, 8 days.
  8. The dates of birth and death for Ek are unknown.
  9. The term Supreme Leader is used as a description, for the sake of brevity, rather than being an official title of a single office. The actual offices held by Kim Jong-un are: General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea, Chairman of the Central Military Commission of the Workers' Party of Korea, President of the State Affairs Commission of the DPRK, and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the DPRK.
  10. 10.0 10.1 Kim's year of birth has been the subject of dispute. North Korean authorities and state-run media have stated Kim's birth date is 8 January 1982, but South Korean intelligence officials believe the actual date is a year later. Until 2018, the U.S. Treasury Department had claimed that his year of birth is 1984.
  11. Previously Chairman of the National Committee for the Salvation of the People of Mali in 2020 and 2021.
  12. Previously Prime Minister of Georgia from 2013–2015.
  13. Began personal reign after a 3-year regency
  14. The country was called the Kingdom of Swaziland until 19 April 2018.