When Samuel Griffith came into power in November 1883, Morehead was appointed leader of the opposition and held this position for some years.

[1] When McIlwraith resigned, Morehead succeeded him on 30 November 1888 as Premier of Queensland and colonial secretary.

His first wife was Annabella Campbell, née Ranken (died 1890),[4] whom he married at Lockyersleigh, Goulburn, on 4 June 1873, and with whom he had seven daughters.

Morehead died from a cerebral haemorrhage on 30 October 1905 at a private hospital in Gregory Terrace, Brisbane.

His funeral proceeded from Valmore, the Wooloowin home of his son-in-law, Orme Darvall, to the Toowong Cemetery.