Michelle Obama is closing out the decade on a high note by being named 2019’s “most admired woman” in the world for the second year in a row. It also marks perhaps the most positive way we’ve shouted “of course!” all year.
Every year since 1948, Gallup asks Americans which man and woman living anywhere in the world they admire the most. Obama won by a landslide (no surprises there) as the only woman on the list to rank in double digits with 10% of the votes. According to the polling organization, Obama has held a widely positive position in the eyes of the public since her husband Barack Obama took office in 2009. You could say she’s easily one of the most, if not the most, admired woman of the past decade.
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Melania Trump came in second with 5% of respondents filling in her name. Oprah Winfrey and climate change activist Greta Thunberg tied for third with 3% each. It’s quite the coveted list. Other women to round out the list include House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Queen Elizabeth II, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and Senator Elizabeth Warren to name a few.
Everything appears to be coming up Michelle, because the former first lady was also named world’s most admired woman in an annual study conducted by online research firm YouGov back in July. After the release of her bestselling memoir Becoming last year, Obama was the runaway winner with 15% of respondents.
The Obamas remain a fixture at the top of Gallup’s list. Former President Barack Obama tied for first with President Donald Trump for the most admired man of the year, with 18% of the votes — marking his 12th time in the top spot. According to Gallup, well-liked former presidents and first ladies are historically popular responses ever since the list began. Michelle Obama is the sixth first lady, present and former, to be awarded this recognition from the polling organization, Eleanor Roosevelt, Jackie Kennedy, Mamie Eisenhower, Betty Ford, and Hillary Clinton being the others.
Obama may soon be able to add another accolade to her list. She is currently nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album for her work on the audiobook adaptation of her memoir.
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