William Tubman became president of Liberia in 1944, when legislative representation remained concentrated in coastal counties dominated by Americo-Liberian descendants and other immigrants. The hinterland majority was administered through district commissioners who supervised chiefs, giving the interior a colonial-style political status. Tubman’s programme sought to erode this division without removing the established political dominance of the True Whig Party.

Tubman extended House of Representatives representation to the hinterland in 1944 and opened the Senate to new hinterland counties in 1964. The same year, the colonial-style administration was ended. He also sought to appoint people of tribal background to senior posts and became the first Liberian president to travel regularly in the interior, making political integration a visible feature of his presidency.

Tubman positioned Liberia more firmly within continental African politics. During the Nigerian Civil War, he supported the federal cause and acted as an elder statesman. His open-door economic policy attracted foreign concessionaires and ensured that Liberia no longer relied economically on the United States, although mining and primary production continued to dominate the export economy.