Women leaders worldwide 1960-2025| ��ƽ��

Number of countries where the de facto highest position of executive power was held by a woman from 1960 to 2025

Characteristic	Number of countries to have had a female leader in the calendar year
2025*	15
2024	15
2023	15
2022	17
2021	16
2020	15
2019	17
2018	12
2017	13
2016	13
2015	15
2014	17
2013	16
2012	15
2011	16
2010	15
2009	10
2008	7
2007	8
2006	7
2005	5
2004	6
2003	7
2002	6
2001	6
2000	4
1999	6
1998	4
1997	7
1996	6
1995	6
1994	6
1993	6
1992	6
1991	7
1990	8
1989	5
1988	5
1987	4
1986	5
1985	3
1984	5
1983	4
1982	4
1981	4
1980	5
1979	3
1978	0
1977	2
1976	3
1975	3
1974	4
1973	3
1972	3
1971	3
1970	3
1969	2
1968	1
1967	1
1966	1
1965	1
1964	1
1963	1
1962	1
1961	1
1960	1

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Release date

July 2025

More information

Region

Worldwide

Survey time period

1960 to July 07, 2024

Supplementary notes

*July 07, 2025. Includes Suriname's Jennifer Geerlings-Simon, who will take office on July 16.

This data refers to all countries that are current (or defunct, i.e. Yugoslavia) United Nations member states. This list does not include non-member states, such as Kosovo or Taiwan.

This data was compiled from various sources, mostly from The Council of Women World Leaders and Encyclopedia Britannica, but also the official website of the Austrian, Barbadian, and Nepalese governments, as well as news outlets such as the BBC, RNZ, and peoplepill.

This data deals with the de facto leaders of countries, and does not include women who have held the title of President or Prime Minister who served in either a ceremonial role, or as deputy to another leader. For example, while Ireland has had two female Presidents, this is not included as executive power lies with the Taoiseach (Prime Minister).

This data shows the number of countries with women in the highest position of executive power at any point in that year, not how many women held these roles simultaneously.

Citation formats

The highest position of executive power has been held by a woman in just 65 countries since 1960. Since Sirimavo Bandaranaike was first elected Prime Minister of Sri Lanka in 1960, the number of women in power has grown slowly, with the fastest growth coming in the past 15 years. As of July 2025, there were 14 countries led by women, with Liechtenstein, Namibia, and Suriname electing their first women leaders in 2025; while Thailand's prime minister was suspended in July following an ethics scandal. Despite this number growing in recent decades, there have never been more than 17 countries with women in the highest positions of power in a single year, which is less than 10 percent of the number of men who have held these positions (as today, there are 193 UN member states).

Records

The women who have served the longest consecutive terms in these positions are Angela Merkel of Germany (16 years, 16 days), Dame Eugenia Charles of Dominica (14 years, 328 days), and Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia (12 years, 6 days). The longest combined non-consecutive terms were held by Indira Gandhi of India (16 years, 15 days) and Bangladesh's Sheikh Hasina (20 years, 234 days). Just 15 countries have had more than one woman in the highest position of executive power, and most of these countries can be found either in the Indian sub-continent or in Europe. Of these 14, Finland, Iceland, Moldova, New Zealand, and the UK are the only countries to have had three female leaders, although the unique federal system of Switzerland has had five women serve in nine annual-terms as President of the Swiss Confederation.

The first woman Prime Minister

The first democratically elected female Prime Minister was Sirimavo Bandaranaike of Sri Lanka, who took over the leadership of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party when her husband was assassinated in 1959. Bandaranaike successfully led her party to victory in three elections, in 1960, 1970 and 1994, however constitutional changes in the 1980s meant that her final term as Prime Minister was spent in a more ceremonial role, while the President now held the real executive power (although the President at this time was also a woman; Bandaranaike's daughter, Chandrika Kumaratunga).