Why was it important that Jefferson Davis was president of the Confederate States of America?

Answer 1

It was significant because his incompetence greatly impeded the Confederate agenda and helped the North to win the war.

Or do you mean "Why did they elect him?" Because he looked like the right sort of person to embody the Confederate cause - an ex-Army officer with a respectable record from the Mexican War, and also a Southern aristocrat very mindful of his feudal obligations a good advertisement for slavery. (He treated his slaves so well that they didn't want their freedom.)

Jefferson Davis' experience and his political offices, such as the US Secretary of War, made a positive impact on the South.

Answer 2

The Confederate Congress in Montgomery, Alabama, appointed Jefferson Davis as the interim president of the Confederacy before the battle at Fort Sumter. Davis would have preferred to have a generalship in the Confederate army. Davis moved the Confederate capital city to Richmond, Virginia. This was a dangerous move as Richmond was only 100 miles south of Washington DC.Davis had excellent qualifications. He was educated at Transylvania University, followed by West Point. Davis proved himself a worthy officer in the Mexican War. He also served as the US Secretary of War. And he was a US Senator.

As an aside, Davis had much better qualifications then his rival, President Abraham Lincoln. Many people are critical of Davis' performance, however, those who do fail to take into consideration that Davis was president of only 11 million people, of which almost 4 million were slaves.

It's prudent to say that if Davis had the economic resources of the Northern economy and 23 million people, he'd have less critics. Davis had to build a government and army from scratch.