On 16 February 1769 the Grand Council elected Battista Negrone the new Doge of Genoa, the one hundred and twenty-fifth in biennial succession and the one hundred and seventieth in the history of the Republic of Genoa.

The Doge's mandate authorised the abolition of the cloistered prisons, which were followed by their relative demolitions.

The repeal of torture, despite the support of Doge Negrone and the approval with full marks from the colleges, nevertheless found the opposition of the supreme trade unions.

Almost at the end of the two-year period of his position in office, the Doge Giovanni Battista Negrone fell ill on 26 January 1771.

Assisted by various priests and his personal confessor, he died on the evening of 26 January 1771.