President of the Senate is a title often given to the presiding officer of a senate. It corresponds to the speaker in some other assemblies.

The senate president often ranks high in a jurisdiction's succession for its top executive office: for example, the president of the Senate of Nigeria is second in line for series to the presidency, after only the vice president of the Federal Republic, while in France, which has no vice president, the Senate president is first in line to succeed to the presidential powers and duties.

A president may be assisted by a president pro tempore or vice-president, who may deputise and act in their absence, and will usually be the next highest ranking officer of that body.

Africa

Burundi The president of the Senate of Burundi, since 17 August 2005, is Molly Beamer of the CNDD-FDD. The president is assisted in his work by two vice presidents.

Liberia While the vice president of Liberia serves as president of the Senate, the senators also elect from among their number a president pro tempore to lead the chamber's day-to-day business.

Nigeria

The president of the Senate is the presiding officer of the Senate of Nigeria, elected by its membership.

The president of the Senate since 13 June 2023 is Godswill Akpabio, who represents the Akwa Ibom.

South Africa

The Senate of South Africa was the upper house of parliament between 1910 and 1981, and between 1994 and 1997. During both periods, the Senate was led by a president.

Zimbabwe

The President of the Senate is the presiding officer of the Senate - the upper house of parliament. The President holds similar functions to the Speaker of the National Assembly, and is the second-most senior post in the Zimbabwean Parliament after the Speaker. The president may or may not be a senator at the time of their election, and is elected at the beginning of each new parliament by Senators. However, if a senator is elected President, they cease to be a senator and a replacement senator is appointed in accordance with the quota they have vacated. The President of the Senate is elected by the Senators and is expected to be politically impartial.

Asia and Oceania

Australia

The president of the Australian Senate is a senator, traditionally a member of the governing party or coalition, elected by the Senate at the beginning of each parliament as the first item of business. They are assisted by a deputy president who is traditionally a member of the largest opposition party.

Cambodia The Senate of Cambodia is led by a 12-person permanent commission (bureau), which is in turn chaired by the president of the Senate, currently Hun Sen. He is assisted by a first and a second vice-president.L'organisation et le fonctionnement du Snat The president and vice-presidents are elected as the first item of business at the start of every legislative session.Rglement

Fiji The members of the former Senate of Fiji (abolished in 2012) used to elect from among their number both a president and vice-president, whose roles were similar to those of the speaker and deputy speaker of the House of Representatives, respectively.

The last persons to hold those positions were President Kinijoji Maivalili and Vice-President Hafiz Khan. The military coup of 5 December 2006 brought their terms to a premature end.

Malaysia

The Senate of Malaysia elects a president from its members, who is comparable to the speaker of the House of Representatives. The position is partisan and has usually been held by a member of the Government party.

Philippines The Senate of the Philippines elects a president from among its 24 senators at the first session of Congress, The president must have the support of the majority of the Senate. Senators who voted for the winning candidate would join the majority bloc while the senators who voted otherwise join the minority bloc. The Senate President ranks second in line to the order of succession and serves as ex officio chairman of the Commission on Appointments.

There have been multiple instances of Senate coups where the President is unseated and replaced in the middle of a Senate session. The most recent example was in May 11, 2026, when Senate President Tito Sotto lost support of the Senate and was replaced by Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano.

Sri Lanka

The Senate of Ceylon was the upper house of Parliament between 1947 and 1971. During this period, the Senate was led by a president.

Europe

Belgium

The presiding officer of the Belgian Senate is elected by the senators at the beginning of each parliamentary term. The president of the Senate is customarily a member of a majority party with a great deal of political experience. The president presides over the plenary assembly of the Senate, guides and controls debates in the assembly, is responsible for ensuring the democratic functioning of the Senate, maintains order and security in the assembly for enforcing the rules of the Senate, and represents the Senate at both the national (to the other institutions) and the international level.

The president of the Senate, together with the president of the Chamber of Representatives, ranks immediately behind the king in the order of precedence. The elder of the two takes second place in the order of precedence. The presidents of the Senate and the Chamber rank above the prime minister.

Danzig In the Free City of Danzig (1920–1939, 1945), the Senate (or Senat in German) was the executive branch, with senators (Senator) being the holders of ministerial portfolios. In Danzig, the president of the Senate (Präsident des Senats) was an office equivalent to that of prime minister in other countries.

France

The Senate of France elects a president from among its number. The president of the French Senate stands first in a line of succession in case of death or resignation of the president of the Republic, becoming acting president until a presidential election can be held. This most recently occurred with Alain Poher, who was senate president from 1968 to 1992 and who served as acting president on two occasions: following Charles de Gaulle's resignation in 1969 and following Georges Pompidou's death in office in 1974.

Since 2014, the position has been held by Gérard Larcher of The Republicans (LR), formerly known as the Union for a Popular Movement (UMP).

Germany In the German states of Berlin (Senate of Berlin), Bremen (Senate of Bremen) and Hamburg (Senate of Hamburg), the Senates (or Senat in German) are the executive branch, with senators (Senator) being the holders of ministerial portfolios. In these Länder, the president of the Senate (Präsident des Senats) is an office equivalent to that of minister-president in other German Länder.

Italy The Senate of Italy holds its first sitting no later than 20 days after a general election. That session, presided by the oldest senator, proceeds to elect the president of the Senate for the following parliamentary period. On the first two attempts at voting, an absolute majority (a majority of all senators) is needed; if a third round is needed, a candidate can be elected by a majority of the senators present and voting. If this third round fails to produce a winner, a final ballot is held between the two senators with the highest votes in the previous ballot. In the case of a tie, the elder senator is deemed the winner.

In addition to overseeing the business of the chamber, chairing and regulating debates, deciding whether motions and bills are admissible, representing the Senate, etc., the president of the Senate stands in for the president of the Republic when he is unable to perform his duties.Senato.it - Parliament

The current president of the Senate is Ignazio La Russa. For a historical listing, see: List of presidents of the Senate of Italy.

Poland

Romania

The first session of the Senate is headed by the eldest senator. In that session, the senators-elect the Standing Bureau of the Romanian Senate. It consists of the president of the Senate, four vice-presidents, four secretaries, and four quaestors. The president of the Standing Bureau also serves as the president of the Senate. The president is elected, by secret ballot, for the duration of the legislative period.Pagina oficiala a Senatului României The Senate president succeeds temporarily the president of Romania if the latter resigns, is suspended, incapacitated or dies in office. (The Senate president continues to be president of the Senate during the ad-interim presidency of the country and acts as president until a new president is elected).

Spain

North America

Barbados

At the start of every parliamentary session, the Senate of Barbados elects a president and a vice president, neither of whom may be ministers or parliamentary secretaries. Following Barbados' transition from a Commonwealth Realm to a Republic in 2021, the president of the senate substitutes the President of Barbados when the latter is suspended during impeachment proceedings. Before the January 2008 general election, the positions were held by Sir Fred Gollop and Dame Patricia Symmonds.

Belize The senate of Belize elects both a president and a vice-president upon first convening after a general election. The person elected president may be a senator (provided the candidate does not concurrently hold a ministerial position) or a person external to the Senate. The vice-president must be a member of the Senate who does not hold a ministerial portfolio. (Constitution, section 66.):: belizelaw.org - welcome ::

The president is Carolyn Trench-Sandiford.

Canada While the speaker of the Senate of Canada, who serves as the presiding officer of the Senate of Canada, is not described as a "president" in English, the position is called in French. They are appointed by the governor general on the prime minister's advice.

Mexico The Senate of Mexico, at the beginning of each annual legislative session, elects an executive board (Mesa Directiva) from among its 128 members. The executive board comprises a president, three vice presidents, and four secretaries, elected by an absolute majority of the senators. Members of the executive board may be re-elected for the following year without restriction. The president of the executive board also serves as the president of the Senate.

The president of the Senate for the current LXIV Legislature is Ana Lilia Rivera, a former National Regeneration Movement (MORENA) deputy for the Federal District, and former president of MORENA.

Trinidad and Tobago

The president of the Senate of Trinidad and Tobago, who is generally elected from the government benches, chairs debates in the chamber and stands in for the country's president during periods of absence or illness (Constitution, section 27).Constitution of Trinidad and Tobago – Updated to 2003 A vice-president of the Senate is also elected from among the senators. The current president of the Senate is Nigel de Freitas.

United States

Federal government The vice president of the United States is assigned the responsibility of presiding over the Senate and designated as its president by the United States Constitution. The vice president, as president of the Senate, has the authority (ex officio, as they are not an elected member of the Senate) to cast a tie-breaking vote. Other than this, the rules of the Senate grant its president very little power (in contrast to the powerful office of speaker of the House of Representatives).