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Gallup's most admired man and woman poll facts for kids

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Black-and-white photographic portrait of Dwight D. Eisenhower
Photographic portrait of Barack Obama
Photographic portrait of Hillary Clinton
Photographic portrait of Eleanor Roosevelt
Dwight D. Eisenhower (top left) and Barack Obama (top right) have each been the most admired man 12 times. Hillary Clinton (bottom left) has been the most admired woman 22 times, and Eleanor Roosevelt (bottom right) has been the most admired woman 13 times.

Gallup, an American analytics and advisory company, has conducted an annual opinion poll to determine the most admired man and woman in the United States at the end of most years since 1946. Americans are asked, without prompting, to say which man and woman "living today in any part of the world" they admire the most. The results of the poll published as a top-ten list. In most years, the most admired man has been the incumbent president of the United States, and the most admired woman has been the first lady.

The incumbent president has been the most admired man in 58 of the 72 years in which the poll has been conducted. Dwight D. Eisenhower and Barack Obama have each been the most admired man 12 times. In his lifetime, the evangelist Billy Graham had 61 appearances in the top-ten list, the most of any individual, and 8 second-place finishes. Other men with many appearances are Ronald Reagan (31), Jimmy Carter (28), and Pope John Paul II (27). The incumbent pope has finished in the top-ten list every year since 1977. The survey has been considered, in part, to be a test of name recognition. While the top of the list is often predictable, scholars have found appearances further down in the top ten to be illuminating. For instance, in 1958, Governor Orval Faubus of Arkansas, a segregationist, appeared on the list in the wake of the Little Rock Nine civil-rights episode. A portion of those surveyed have chosen a friend or relative instead of a public figure.

Two former first ladies have had the most appearances as the most admired woman: Eleanor Roosevelt and Hillary Clinton. In the late 1940s and 1950s, Roosevelt was an ambassador to the United Nations, serving as the chair of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights and leading the drafting of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and was widely referred to as the "First Lady of the World". Clinton served as the first lady from 1993 to 2001, a senator from New York, the secretary of state, and was the first American female presidential nominee of either of the two major American political parties when she ran in the 2016 presidential election. Clinton topped the list in 22 of the 25 polls conducted during between 1993 and 2017, including 16 times in a row from 2002 to 2017, before Michelle Obama became the most admired woman in 2018. Roosevelt was named the most admired woman 13 times. The highest number of top-ten appearances belongs to Queen Elizabeth II, with 52. Despite never winning, broadcaster Oprah Winfrey has finished in the top ten a total of 33 times, including finishing second 14 times.

In 1980, Mother Teresa and Rosalynn Carter tied for the most admired woman, and in 2019, Barack Obama and Donald Trump shared the title of most admired man. For the years 1946 and 1947, the "most admired person" was asked; the "most admired woman" was not asked in 1967. No poll was conducted in 1976, 2021, and 2022.

Most admired man and woman

List of winners of Gallup's most admired man and woman poll
Year Most admired man Most admired woman Ref.
Portrait Name Portrait Name
1946 Photographic portrait of Douglas MacArthur MacArthur, DouglasDouglas MacArthur Not asked
1947
1948 Photographic portrait of Harry S. Truman Truman, Harry S.Harry S. Truman Black-and-white photographic portrait of Eleanor Roosevelt Roosevelt, EleanorEleanor Roosevelt
1949
1950 Photographic portrait of Dwight D. Eisenhower Eisenhower, Dwight D.Dwight D. Eisenhower
1951 Photographic portrait of Douglas MacArthur MacArthur, DouglasDouglas MacArthur Black-and-white photographic portrait of Elizabeth Kenny Kenny, ElizabethElizabeth Kenny
1952 Photographic portrait of Dwight D. Eisenhower Eisenhower, Dwight D.Dwight D. Eisenhower Black-and-white photographic portrait of Eleanor Roosevelt Roosevelt, EleanorEleanor Roosevelt
1953
1954
1955
1956
1957
1958
1959
1960
1961 Black-and-white photographic portrait of John F. Kennedy Kennedy, John F.John F. Kennedy
1962 Photographic portrait of Jacqueline Kennedy Kennedy Onassis, JacquelineJacqueline Kennedy Onassis
1963 Photographic portrait of Lyndon B. Johnson Johnson, Lyndon B.Lyndon B. Johnson
1964
1965
1966
1967 Photographic portrait of Dwight D. Eisenhower Eisenhower, Dwight D.Dwight D. Eisenhower Not asked
1968 Black-and-white photographic portrait of Ethel Kennedy Kennedy, EthelEthel Kennedy
1969 Photographic portrait of Richard Nixon Nixon, RichardRichard Nixon Black-and-white photographic portrait of Mamie Eisenhower Eisenhower, MamieMamie Eisenhower
1970
1971 Black-and-white photographic portrait of Golda Meir Meir, GoldaGolda Meir
1972 Photographic portrait of Pat Nixon Nixon, PatPat Nixon
1973 Black-and-white photographic portrait of Henry Kissinger Kissinger, HenryHenry Kissinger Black-and-white photographic portrait of Golda Meir Meir, GoldaGolda Meir
1974
1975 Photographic portrait of Betty Ford Ford, BettyBetty Ford
1976 Not asked
1977 Photographic portrait of Jimmy Carter Carter, JimmyJimmy Carter Photographic portrait of Rosalynn Carter Carter, RosalynnRosalynn Carter
1978 Photographic portrait of Betty Ford Ford, BettyBetty Ford
1979 Photographic portrait of Rosalynn Carter Carter, RosalynnRosalynn Carter
1980 Photographic portrait of Pope John Paul II Paul II, Pope JohnPope John Paul II Photographic portrait of Mother Teresa (left) and Rosalynn Carter (right) Teresa, MotherMother Teresa and Carter, RosalynnRosalynn Carter

(tie)

1981 Photographic portrait of Ronald Reagan Reagan, RonaldRonald Reagan Photographic portrait of Nancy Reagan Reagan, NancyNancy Reagan
1982 Photographic portrait of Margaret Thatcher Thatcher, MargaretMargaret Thatcher
1983
1984
1985 Photographic portrait of Nancy Reagan Reagan, NancyNancy Reagan
1986 Photographic portrait of Mother Teresa Teresa, MotherMother Teresa
1987 Photographic portrait of Nancy Reagan Reagan, NancyNancy Reagan
1988 Photographic portrait of Margaret Thatcher Thatcher, MargaretMargaret Thatcher
1989 Photographic portrait of George H. W. Bush Bush, George H. W.George H. W. Bush
1990
1991 Photographic portrait of Barbara Bush Bush, BarbaraBarbara Bush
1992
1993 Photographic portrait of Bill Clinton Clinton, BillBill Clinton Photographic portrait of Hillary Clinton Clinton, HillaryHillary Clinton
1994
1995 Photographic portrait of Mother Teresa Teresa, MotherMother Teresa
1996
1997 Photographic portrait of Hillary Clinton Clinton, HillaryHillary Clinton
1998
1999
2000
2001 Photographic portrait of George W. Bush Bush, George W.George W. Bush Photographic portrait of Laura Bush Bush, LauraLaura Bush
2002 Photographic portrait of Hillary Clinton Clinton, HillaryHillary Clinton
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008 Photographic portrait of Barack Obama Obama, BarackBarack Obama
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018 Photographic portrait of Michelle Obama Obama, MichelleMichelle Obama
2019 Photographic portrait of Donald Trump (left) and Barack Obama (right) Obama, BarackBarack Obama and Trump, DonaldDonald Trump

(tie)

2020 Photographic portrait of Donald Trump Trump, DonaldDonald Trump
2021 Not asked
2022 Not asked

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Encuesta Gallup del hombre y de la mujer más admirados en Estados Unidos para niños

  • Gallup's List of Most Widely Admired People of the 20th Century

Note

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