The movement toward independence began to take shape at the end of 1967. Early the following year the Spanish government suspended autonomous political control and, with the subsequent approval of the Organization of African Unity (OAU), proposed that a national referendum be held to approve the new constitution. The constitution was overwhelmingly approved on August 11 and was followed by parliamentary elections in September and by the proclamation of independence on October 12, 1968.

The first president was Francisco Macías Nguema (also known as Macías Nguema Biyogo Masie). After his election in 1971, he assumed wide powers and pushed through a constitution that named him president for life in July 1972. He assumed absolute personal powers in 1973, and the island of Fernando Po was renamed Macias Nguema Biyogo Island in his honour. He controlled the radio and press, and foreign travel was stopped. In 1975–77 there were many arrests and summary executions, which brought protests from world leaders and the human rights organization Amnesty International. During this period there was a mass exodus by citizens of Equatorial Guinea, and the Nigerian government repatriated its nationals, who had been working as migrant labourers on Equatorial Guinea’s plantations, by 1976.

Macías was overthrown in 1979 by his nephew, Lieut. Col. Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, and executed. Obiang led a Supreme Military Council, to which he added some civilians in 1981. A less authoritarian constitution was instituted in 1982, followed by the election of 41 unopposed candidates to the legislature in 1983. Although another new constitution in 1991 provided for a multiparty state—leading to the first multiparty elections, held in 1993—there was no indication that Obiang would willingly give up power, and his regime was the subject of much international criticism for its oppressive nature. In the 1990s and early 2000s, the president and the members of his party repeatedly won reelection by lopsided margins in ballots that were fraught with charges of fraud. Further, accusations abounded that a clique surrounding the president had systematically pocketed the bulk of the country’s considerable oil revenue, which grew dramatically beginning in the late 20th century. As it had done since the 1980s, Obiang’s regime continued to claim that it was the subject of several attempted coups, but most of the allegations could not be confirmed. A notable exception was a plot to replace Obiang with exiled opposition leader Severo Moto; uncovered in 2004, the plan involved foreign mercenaries. In July 2008 a Malabo court sentenced a British mercenary, Simon Mann, to 34 years in prison for his role in the affair, but Obiang pardoned him in November 2009.

In November 2011 Equatorial Guinea approved many changes to its constitution via referendum with a reported 97.7 percent of the vote. Changes included making the unicameral legislature bicameral, imposing a limit of two consecutive presidential terms, lifting the age limit for presidential candidates, and creating the position of a vice president, who would be appointed by the president and who would be next in line to assume the presidency should the incumbent president die or retire. The last two changes, as well as others, had been denounced as means of expanding Obiang’s grip on power . The vote itself was the target of criticism, with allegations of voting irregularities, intimidation, and harassment. The revised constitution was promulgated in February 2012. In May Obiang appointed one of his sons, Teodoro (“Teodorin”) Nguema Obiang Mangue, as second vice president, a position that was not provided for under the recent changes to the constitution. Teodorin was widely viewed as Obiang’s choice for his successor. In 2014 Obiang announced that he was granting amnesty to political opponents as one of his efforts to prepare for a national dialogue with opposition parties, civil society groups, and other stakeholders that was scheduled to take place later that year. The dialogue, however, did not result in much meaningful change, and many political opponents remained in prison.

In 2015 Equatorial Guinea unexpectedly hosted the Africa Cup of Nations football (soccer) tournament. Just months before Africa’s most prestigious football tournament was to start, in January 2015, Morocco, the original host, balked at holding it as scheduled because of fears regarding an ongoing outbreak of the Ebola virus. Rather than postpone the games, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) stripped Morocco of hosting duties. Equatorial Guinea was soon named the new host and was allowed to field a team despite having been disqualified the previous year. In mere weeks the country and CAF managed to plan a tournament that typically took years of preparation, although there were some complaints of substandard facilities and transportation.

Equatorial Guinea’s 2016 presidential election was held on April 24. As in previous polls, Obiang was reelected by a huge margin—93.7 percent—though numerous human rights violations of opposition supporters were alleged to have occurred prior to the election, and there were reports of electoral fraud. Obiang attempted to hold another national dialogue in 2018, but it was dismissed as a public relations stunt by Moto, who remained a leading opposition figure, and the event was boycotted. The country did win accolades for a measure that abolished the death penalty, which Obiang signed into law in September 2022.

The country held elections on November 20, 2022, and, in the presidential poll, Obiang was reelected with 94.9 percent of the vote. As in previous elections, however, the credibility of the results was called into question. International and domestic observers reported irregularities in the electoral process and noted concerns about unfair campaign practices and instances of intimidation and coercion.