Family dictatorship

A family dictatorship, or hereditary dictatorship, in political science terms a personalistic regime, is a form of dictatorship that occurs in a nominally or formally republican regime, but operates in practice like an absolute monarchy or despotate, in that political power passes within the dictator's family like a hereditary monarchy. Thus, although the key leader is often called president or prime minister rather than a king or emperor, power is transmitted between members of the same family due to the overwhelming authority of the leader. Sometimes the leader has been declared president for life and uses this power to nominate one of his or her family as successor.
Successful transitions of power
Dates in parentheses denote the period of rule.
Europe
* Roman Republic: Gaius Julius Caesar (49-44 BCE) succeeded by his grand-nephew and adopted son Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus (44-27 BCE).
* Roman Empire: The early dynasties of the Roman Empire, the Principate, operated similarly to a family dictatorship. Augustus (27 BCE-14 CE) kept up the facade of a republic during his reign but designated his own successor, Tiberius, by adopting Tiberius and convincing the Senate to transfer his powers to Tiberius (14 CE-37 CE) upon his death. For three hundred years, subsequent emperors customarily designated their successor by adoption, most famously during the Julio-Claudian (27 BCE-68 CE) & Nerva-Antonine (96-192 CE) dynasties. But, from the outset, this was due to a combination of factors, including ill-luck, political intrigue, the necessitation of a valid heir, and the influence of the Praetorian Guard following the assassination of Caligula (37-41 CE), rather than Augustus's original intentions for succession to the throne. From the reign of Diocletian (284-305 CE) onwards, during the Dominate, emperors ruled in an openly monarchic style.
* : Stadtholders were chosen exclusively from the House of Orange-Nassau. In all, nine princes of this dynasty ruled the Republic from 1559 to 1795. Stadtholders were described as dictators by William Aglionby in his 1669 book, The Present State of the United Provinces of the Low-Countries.
* : Oliver Cromwell (1653-1658) succeeded as Lord Protector by his son Richard Cromwell (1658-1659). Richard Cromwell was overthrown by the army in Spring 1659, leading to the restoration of King Charles II the next year.
* Azerbaijan: Heydar Aliyev (President, 1993-2003); succeeded by his son Ilham Aliyev (2003-present).
Central and South America
* Paraguay: Carlos Antonio López (President, 1840-1862); succeeded by his son, Francisco Solano López (1862-1870)
*: Carlos Meléndez (President, 1915-1918), succeeded by his brother-in-law Alfonso Quiñónez Molina (1918-1919) as acting president and then by his brother Jorge Meléndez (1919-1923), who was succeeded again by his brother-in-law Alfonso Quiñónez Molina (1923-1927)
* Dominican Republic: Rafael Trujillo (de facto 1930-1961, with brother Héctor serving as figurehead president 1952-1960), nominally succeeded by his son Ramfis Trujillo for a few months in 1961; Ramfis failed to fully consolidate his power over the country and was overthrown.
* Nicaragua: Anastasio Somoza García (President, 1937-1947, de facto 1947-1950, 1950-1956), succeeded by his son Luis Somoza Debayle (1956-1963, de facto 1963-1967), succeeded by his brother Anastasio Somoza Debayle (1967-1972, de facto 1972-1974, 1974-1979). See also Somoza family.
* : François Duvalier (President and later President For Life, 1957-1971); succeeded by his son Jean-Claude Duvalier (President For Life, 1971-1986). See also Duvalier dynasty.
* Cuba: Fidel Castro (variously as Prime Minister, President, and First Secretary of the Communist Party, 1959-2011), succeeded by his brother Raúl Castro (2011-2021).
* Argentina: Juan Perón (President, 1972-1974) succeeded by his wife Isabel Perón (1974-1976).
Asia
* Japan: During the Shogunate rule (1185-1868), Shogun were appointed by the Emperor from several clans and practiced hereditary succession throughout its rule.
* Republic of China (Taiwan): Chiang Kai-shek (1928-1975) succeeded by his son Chiang Ching-kuo (1975-1988)
* : Kim Il-sung (1948-1994), succeeded by his son Kim Jong-il (1994-2011), succeeded by his son Kim Jong-un (2011-present). Kim Jong-il did not officially take office until 1997, when his father was posthumously given the position of Eternal President. On 2 June 2009, it was reported that Kim Jong-il's youngest son, Kim Jong-un, was to be North Korea's next leader. Like his father and grandfather, he was given an official sobriquet, The Great Successor and The Brilliant Comrade. It was reported that Kim Jong-il was expected to officially designate the son as his successor in 2012, but Kim Jong-il died in 2011 and Kim Jong-un was nevertheless announced as his successor. The 2013 edition of the "Ten Fundamental Principles of the " - Article 10, Clause 2 - states that the Party and Revolution must be carried "eternally" by the "Baekdu (Kim's) bloodline". See also Kim Dynasty.
* Iraq: Abdul Salam Arif (President, 1963-1966); succeeded by his brother Abdul Rahman Arif (1966-1968).
** : President Ahmed Hassan Al Bakr (1968-1979) succeeded by his cousin Saddam Hussein (1979-2003).
* Syria: Hafez al-Assad (1971-2000), succeeded by his son Bashar al-Assad (2000-present). Bashar's elder brother, Basil al-Assad, had been designated for the presidency but died in 1994, six years prior to his father's death. See also Al-Assad family.
* Sri Lanka: The Rajapaksa family has influenced Sri Lankan politics and held higher positions in the government since 2004. President Mahinda Rajapaksa (2004-2015) was indirectly succeeded by his brother Gotabaya Rajapaksa (2019-present) with Mahinda currently serving as his brother's Prime Minister. There are also several members of the family who was given higher government positions
* Turkmenistan: Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow (2007-2022) succeeded by his son Serdar Berdimuhamedow (2022-present). Serdar has previously held numerous government positions.
Africa
* Equatorial Guinea: Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo (1979-present) overthrew his uncle Francisco Macías Nguema (President; 1968-1979) in a .
* Gabon: Omar Bongo (, 1966-1967; President, 1967-2009) died in June 2009. His son Ali Bongo Ondimba (2009-present) succeeded him after winning a disputed election in August 2009.
* : Seyni Kountché (President; 1974-1987) was succeeded by his cousin Ali Saibou (1987-1993) after his death.
* : Gnassingbé Eyadéma (President, 1967-2005); succeeded by his son Faure Gnassingbé (2005-present). Under international pressure, Faure had to resign on 25 February 2005, but was elected to the presidency in April 2005.
* Djibouti: Hassan Gouled Aptidon (President, 1977-1999); succeeded by his nephew Ismaïl Omar Guelleh (1999-present).
* Chad: Idriss Déby (President, 1990-2021); killed during the northern Chad offensive and succeeded by his son Mahamat Déby Itno (2021-present).
* Democratic Republic of the Congo: Laurent-Désiré Kabila (President, 1997-2001); succeeded by his son Joseph Kabila (2001-2019). Joseph Kabila was elected in October 2006.
;Notes
Unfulfilled successions
* Hungary: Miklós Horthy (Regent of Hungary, 1920-1944) designated his son István Horthy to succeed him as regent until Istvan was killed by accident in 1942.
* Argentina: Juan Perón (President, 1946-1955) planned for his first wife, Eva Perón, to succeed him until her death in 1952. His second wife Isabel Perón did succeed him when he died half way into his (1972-1976) second term.
* : After the death of Mao Zedong (Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party, 1943-1976), his wife Jiang Qing planned a bloodless coup with the Gang of Four, but was failed due to the action from Mao’s successor Hua Guofeng.
* : (Prime Minister, 1954-1955; President, 1955-1963) intended to hand power to his brother, until both were arrested and assassinated during the 1963 coup.
* Zaire: Mobutu Sese Seko (President, 1965-1997) was known to have 17 children from his two wives and mistresses. For years Mobutu has groomed his children to become is potential successor, especially his eldest son Niwa Mobutu, who was appointed as Minister of International Cooperation and his other son Kongolu Mobutu who was a captain of DSP. After the end of First Congo War in 1997, Mobutu regime was overthrown and forced into exile in Morocco until he died the same year. Both of his potential successor Niwa and Kongolu both died in Monaco of AIDS one year later.
* Philippines: Ferdinand Marcos (1965-1986) intended his wife Imelda Marcos to be his successor but was ousted through the People Power Revolution. In addition, their son Bongbong Marcos was also included to succeed him.
* Indonesia: Suharto (President, 1967-1998) intended to hand power to his daughter, Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana or his son, Tommy Suharto to be his successor but the succession never happened as he resigned after the violent protest in 1998. He was later replaced by his vice-president B. J. Habibie.
* : , wife of Romanian dictator (General Secretary of the Romanian Communist Party, 1965-1989; President of the State Council, 1967-1989; President, 1974-1989), was intended to succeed her husband until they were during the 1989 Romanian Revolution. In addition, they were preparing their son, , to succeed them.
* Libya: It was speculated that Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, the second son of then-leader Muammar Gaddafi (Brotherly Leader and Guide of the Revolution, 1969-2011) was going to succeed Gaddafi as leader, but Muammar was overthrown and killed. In addition, Saif al-Islam stated that "this is not a farm to inherit". Muammar Gaddafi's fourth son Mutassim Gaddafi was considered Saif al-Islam's strongest competitor in the question of succeeding their father.
* Bangladesh: Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the first President of Bangladesh (1971-1975), expected his son Sheikh Kamal to succeed him. Both were assassinated in 1975.
* : In 2004, Ali Abdullah Saleh (President of North Yemen then President of unified Yemen, 1978-2012) appointed his son, Ahmed Saleh, as commander of the Yemeni Republican Guard - a move interpreted by analysts as designating a family succession. Amid the Yemeni Revolution in 2012 and shortly after being elected president, Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi dissolved the Republican Guard, effectively removing Ahmed Saleh from any meaningful power.
* : Saddam Hussein (1979-2003) designated his elder son Uday Hussein to succeed him as president, then changed the succession to his younger son Qusay Hussein after Uday suffered a severe injury in 1996. The U.S. invasion of Iraq and the death of both his sons, followed by Saddam's trial and subsequent execution made a successor irrelevant. See also Saddam's family.
* : In 2010, José Eduardo dos Santos (President, 1979-2017) appointed his cousin Fernando da Piedade Dias dos Santos as Vice-President of Angola which opened speculation about a succession. However, in 2012, the ruling announced President dos Santos' candidacy for re-election instead, because he had no intention to retire until 2017, when João Lourenço was chosen to succeed him instead.
* : Robert Mugabe (Prime Minister then President, 1980-2017) wanted his wife Grace to succeed him, but this was prevented by a .
* Malaysia: Mahathir Mohamad (Prime Minister, 1981-2003; 2018-2020) once told the high court that he would have made his son, Mukhriz Mahathir, head of government long ago, but this never happened as Mahathir chose Abdullah Ahmad Badawi (initially Anwar Ibrahim) as his successor later.
* Egypt: Hosni Mubarak (President, 1981-2011) groomed his son Gamal Mubarak to become his successor, but was ousted in the 2011 Egyptian revolution.
* Tunisia: It was speculated that either Leïla Ben Ali, the wife of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali (President of Tunisia, 1987-2011), or their youngest son Mohamed Zine El Abidine Ben Ali However, Blaise lost his power in 2014 and François was forced into exile in Benin.
* Uzbekistan: Some believed during Islam Karimov's (President, 1991-2016) rule, he initially had prepared his daughter, Gulnara Karimova to succeed him as President. However, she later was implicated in several scandals and was reported to have a conflict with Karimov, resulting in her fall from grace and house arrest which ended her business and political career.
* Kazakhstan: Analysts believed long-time leader Nursultan Nazarbayev (President, 1991-2019) had been preparing his daughter Dariga Nazarbayeva to succeed him. Despite a strained relationship during 2013; in September 2016, Dariga was appointed to the Senate - she was designated as head of the Senate's International Affairs, Defense, and Security Committee. On 19 March 2019, Nazarbayev resigned as president and was succeeded by Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. Following Nursultan's resignation, Dariga was elected Chairwoman of the Senate leading some analysts to believe she would run for president in the scheduled 2020 election. Dariga chose to not run in the snap June 2019 presidential election.
* Myanmar: There are some sources that stated Nay Shwe Thway Aung, the favourite grandson of former military leader Than Shwe (Chairman of the State Peace and Development Council, 1992-2011) was given military high rank despite never actually served in the military. The move created speculation that Nay Shwe Thway Aung was the next in line to succeed his grandfather's rule. However, the succession never happened as Myanmar returned to democracy in 2011, although this transition would end following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état.
* Algeria: The brother of Abdelaziz Bouteflika (President; 1999-2019), Saïd Bouteflika was selected as presidential advisor after the 1999 election. There were a lot of rumour that Saïd was poised to succeed his brother as president. However Abdelaziz was forced to resign in the wake of bloody protest that rocked the country that made the succession plan unfulfilled.
* Venezuela: It was speculated that Adán Chávez, the brother of then-leader Hugo Chávez (President, 1999-2013) was going to succeed Chávez as president, although this did not happen. There was also speculation that one of Hugo Chávez's daughters, Maria Gabriela or Rosa Virginia, would succeed him.
Potential successions
* : The Vice President and First Lady of Azerbaijan Mehriban Aliyeva is widely considered to be in line to succeed her husband Ilham Aliyev as President of Azerbaijan. Analysts also believe that their daughters Leyla and Arzu are also being prepared as their father's or their mother's successors. On 21 February 2017 Mehriban Aliyeva was appointed Vice President of Azerbaijan, an office that was created through a constitutional referendum in 2016.
* : The Daily Telegraph has reported that President Alexander Lukashenko has been preparing to have his young son Nikolai succeed him. Observers have noted how Lukashenko often brings his son on official engagements. On some occasions Nikolai is given a chair with the other heads of state, in sharp contrast with, for instance, the children of the then-President of Uzbekistan Islam Karimov also present in the conference room.
* : Prime Minister Hun Sen has appointed his eldest son, Hun Manet, to a higher military command to prepare him for the premiership.
* : Franck Biya, the son of President Paul Biya has been speculated to be the favourite pick to succeed his father's rule as the country leader.
* : There is a rumour that President Isaias Afewerki is grooming his son, Abraham Isaias Afwerki in order to prepare him as his successor.
* : On 3 August 1979, President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo seized power from his uncle Francisco Macías Nguema. It is rumored that his son, the First Vice President Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue, is his favorite to succeed him (see also 2011 Equatorial Guinean constitutional referendum). However, it is suspected that a power struggle between the younger Teodoro and his uncle Armengol Ondo Nguema might occur after President Obiang's death.
* : According to Iranian journalist Momahad Ahwaze report, Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei is going to hand power to his son Sayyid Mojtaba Hosseini Khamenei, which said to be his favourite pick to be his successor due to his declining health.
* : On 10 January 2017, Rosario Murillo, wife of Nicaraguan president Daniel Ortega, was appointed as vice president of Nicaragua, which raised speculation that Murillo will succeed Ortega as president later.
* : The sister of the Kim Jong-un, Kim Yo-jong, had been removed from the , but became vice-member in April 2020, further fueling speculation about a possible successor. It is rumored that she takes over state business if he cannot run it for health reasons. His daughter Kim Ju-ae as a formal successor as a puppet is also speculated in the event of his death. Other candidates are said to be his brother Kim Jong-chul, his half-uncle Kim Pyong-il, and his wife Ri Sol-ju.
* : In July 2020, the great-nephew of President Vladimir Putin, Roman Putin, led the "People against Corruption" party. Some media believe that this is preparation for the transfer of the presidency from uncle to nephew.
* : Namal Rajapaksa, the son of former President and current Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa was said to be groomed by his father to succeed his and his uncle rule. Namal formerly served as Minister of Youth and Sports under the presidency of his uncle Gotabaya Rajapaksa.
* : On 3 April 2017, Rustam Emomali, the son of President Emomali Rahmon, was elected to the city legislature of the capital and largest city, Dushanbe. This made Rahmon's earlier appointment of Rustam Emomali as Mayor of Dushanbe legal. President Rahmon has other "close relatives" in "high official positions" in Tajikistan. For example, Ozoda Rahmon, one of President Rahmon's daughters, is both her father's chief of the presidential staff and a member of the National Assembly, the upper house of the Tajik parliament.
* : Some observers believe that especially since the shock of the , President tends to trust his own family more than his party or senior bureaucrats. A potential successor could be his son-in-law Berat Albayrak, who held the influential post of finance minister from 2018 to 2020.
* : Critics believe long-time president Yoweri Museveni has been preparing his son Muhoozi Kainerugaba to succeed him. The President's son was commander of Uganda's military elite Special Forces Group until January 2017 when the President appointed him Senior Adviser to the President for Special Operations, plus since 1998 Muhoozi has gone from the rank of Major to Lieutenant General in quick succession. All of this is leading the succession rumours to swell even more.
* : There is a rumor that Nicolás Maduro Guerra, the son of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, is being prepared to succeed his father as Maduro Guerra was named in 2017 as the director of a newly created position, the Director General of Delegations and Presidential Instructions of the Vice President; the creation of which is believed to establish a line of succession.

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