Following the 1974 Revolution, provisional governing bodies were created, whose presiding officers are listed below. After the first elections for the Regional Parliament, held on 27 June 1976, the leader of the largest party Jaime Ornelas Camacho was appointed President of the Regional Government.
The numbering reflects the uninterrupted terms in office served by each president. For example, Alberto João Jardim served for ten consecutive terms and is counted as the second president (not the seventh, eighth, ninth or tenth president): the Roman numerals refer to the legislature that their terms encompassed. Carlos Manuel de Azeredo and Joaquim Miguel Duarte Silva served as presidents of the Regional Junta, the provisional government that functioned during the transition towards democracy.