The President of the Basque Country is referred to as Lehendakari (literally, "firstlier") in Basque, or Eusko Jaurlaritzako Lehendakari ("President of the Basque Government"); the Spanish title is Presidente del Gobierno Vasco.

"Lehendakari"

Before the establishment of Standard Basque in the 1970s, it was spelled Euzko Jaurlaritzaren Lendakari. Incidentally, both euzko and lendakari are Basque neologisms created by members of the Basque Nationalist Party. The generic Basque words for "president" and "government" are presidente/president and gobernu. In the Basque language, they are used for other presidents, like the President of the French Republic or the President of Navarre, and the neologism lehendakari is reserved for the Basque one.

So far, all three post-Franco Lehendakari have come from the Partido Nacionalista Vasco party.

• 1936-1960: José Antonio Aguirre y Lecube (in exile from 1937)
• 1960-1978: Jesús María de Leizaola Sánchez (in exile)
• 1978: Juan de Ajuriaguerra Ochandiano (provisional, hours)
• 1978-1979: Ramón Rubial Cavia (a member of the Partido Socialista de Euskadi, he was actually president of the Basque Council, an multipartite organ preparing the restoration of Basque autonomy.)

• 1979-1985: Carlos Garaikoetxea Urriza
• 1985-1999: José Antonio Ardanza Garro
• 1999-present: Juan José Ibarretxe Markuartu

Aguirre y Lecube served as first Lehendakari of the Región Autónoma del País Vasco, but Franco's army suspended the autonomy of the region in 1937.