Haiti overthrew French colonial rule in a successful slave revolt (
Haitian Revolution) that ended in 1804. Under the
Haitian Constitution, the President of Haiti is elected by popular vote for a five-year term. The President cannot stand for two consecutive terms.
Jean-Bertrand Aristide was elected overwhelmingly as president for a third time at the
2000 election held on 26 November 2000, an election boycotted by most opposition political parties, and sworn in on 4 February 2001. Aristide, a left wing president, was deposed in a
''coup d'état'' on 29 February 2004, led by the
Group of 184, allegedly with assistance of the French and United States governments, on the basis that U.S. and French soldiers had recently arrived in Haiti, ostensibly to protect the U.S. embassy in Haiti. (See
controversy regarding US involvement.) The first election after the
2004 Haitian coup d'état for a new
president was
held on 8 February 2006 with the runoff election on 21 April.
René Préval was declared the winner on 14 May 2006. The
2011 election was held on 28 November 2010 with the runoff election on 20 March 2011.
Michel Martelly succeeded Préval when his term expired on 14 May 2011, the first time in Haitian history that an incumbent president peacefully transferred power to a member of the opposition. Martelly's presidency is rated by some as free and by some as authoritarian. The
2015 presidential election was held on 25 October 2015, but before the runoff, it was criticised by the Haitian public and media as "not-free" and "controlled". According to an exit poll conducted by
Haitian Sentinel, only 6% of voters voted for
Jovenel Moïse. The other presidential runoff candidate,
Jude Célestin, expressed his disapproval of the lack of transparency of the
Conseil Electoral Provisoire (Provisional Electoral Council, CEP). Thirty other candidates commented the 2015 election was controlled disregarding public trust. Martelly resigned the presidency on 10 February 2016, amid allegations that the 2015 election was fraudulent, leaving the country without a government in place. The election result was annulled by the CEP. The
Parliament on 13–14 February 2016 elected
Jocelerme Privert as provisional president for a period of 120 days, in place of the Council of Ministers. On 14 June 2016, Privert's presidential term expired, but he remained as
de facto president as the National Assembly refused to meet to appoint a successor. On 7 February 2017, Privert was succeeded by Moïse who won the
2016 presidential election that was held in November 2016 with the runoff election on 29 January 2017. Since 2018, with no working parliament, Moïse ruled in Haiti by decree. Under the Haitian Constitution, the Prime Minister is appointed by the President and must be confirmed by the National Assembly.
Yvon Neptune was appointed prime minister on 4 March 2002, but was replaced following the coup of February 2004 by
Gérard Latortue, who became interim prime minister. Neptune was imprisoned in June 2004, accused of complicity in an alleged massacre in
Saint-Marc.
United Nations officials expressed skepticism of the evidence and called for either due process or his release. Neptune was formally charged on 20 September 2005, but was never sent to trial.
Jacques-Édouard Alexis became prime minister on 9 June 2006, and Neptune was released on 28 July 2006. In April 2008, Parliament voted to dismiss Alexis following widespread rioting over
food prices. His selected replacement was rejected by Parliament, throwing the country into a prolonged period without a government.
Michèle Pierre-Louis received approval to become the next prime minister from both houses in July 2008. Moïse appointed seven different prime ministers during his time in office, the last of whom was Ariel Henry, who was appointed on 5 July 2021, but had not been sworn in by the time of Moïse's assassination on 7 July. At the time of Moïse's assassination,
Claude Joseph was Haiti's interim prime minister. On 19 July, Joseph relinquished the office of prime minister and
Ariel Henry was sworn in on 20 July. ==Summary==