The President is both head of state and head of government in Angola. While the President does appoint a Prime Minister, actual control is usually kept by the President.
The position of President dates from Angola's independence from Portugal. Agostinho Neto held the position when his Marxist Movimiento Popular de Libertação de Angola (MPLA) won control of the country from the Portuguese. When Neto died in 1979, José Eduardo dos Santos succeeded him. Under dos Santo's leadership, Angola has become a multi-party democracy. The most recent elections, held in 1992, were won by dos Santos with 49% of the vote. Dos Santos' opponent, Jonas Savimbi of the UNITA party, claimed that the elections were fraudulent.
The next presidential elections are expected to take place in 2006.
List of Presidents of Angola, 1975-present
