Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa ( born 15 September 1942) is a Zimbabwean revolutionary and politician who serves as the third and current President of Zimbabwe since 24 November 2017. A member of ZANU–PF and a longtime ally of former President Robert Mugabe, he held a series of Cabinet portfolios and was First Vice-President of Zimbabwe under Mugabe until November 2017, when he was dismissed before coming to power in a coup d'état. He was officially inaugurated as the third President of Zimbabwe on 26 August 2018 after narrowly winning the Zimbabwean general election, 2018.