President of South Yemen
| President of the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen | |
|---|---|
| رئيس جمهورية اليمن الديمقراطية الشعبية | |
| Residence | Al-Maashiq Palace |
| Seat | Crater, Aden Governorate |
| Appointer | General Command, Politburo, Central Committee or any party apparatus |
| Formation | 30 November 1967 |
| First holder | Qahtan Muhammad al-Shaabi (as President) |
| Final holder | Haidar Abu Bakr al-Attas (as President) |
| Abolished | May 22, 1990 |
The People's Democratic Republic of Yemen, commonly referred to as South Yemen, gained independence as the People's Republic of South Yemen on 30 November 1967. The President of the Republic served as head of state, appointing a Prime Minister to serve as head of government.
On 22 June 1969, the left wing of National Front (NF) took power following the Corrective Move, reorganizing the government. The Chairman of the Presidential Council became the head of state. This was followed closely in 1970 by the renaming of the country to the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen. Another reorganization in 1978, following the establishment of the Yemeni Socialist Party in October, changed the title of the head of state to Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme People's Council. This lasted until unification with the Yemen Arab Republic on 22 May 1990, when the then-Chairman became the Prime Minister of the united Yemen.