Dictator
Serdar Berdimuhamedov
Succeeded his father as president in a managed 2022 transition in one of the world's most closed states.
Serdar Berdimuhamedov became president of Turkmenistan in 2022 after his father, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, called a snap election and then stepped aside in his favor — a transition widely viewed as a dynastic handover rather than a genuine democratic contest. His father, who had ruled since 2006, retained the title "National Leader" and continues to wield significant influence as head of the upper chamber of parliament.
Turkmenistan remains one of the world's most isolated and tightly controlled states: Freedom House consistently ranks it among the least free countries globally, citing an absence of independent media, pervasive surveillance, and a personality cult built around the ruling family, including giant gold statues of the elder Berdimuhamedov erected across the capital, Ashgabat.