According to new survey results from YouGov, former President Barack Obama and his wife, former First Lady Michelle Obama, are the most admired man and woman in the world. YouGov began conducting the survey — which includes responses from people from across the globe — in 2014, and this latest run of the poll is apparently the first time that Barack has been in the top spot among men. Michelle, meanwhile, has now been in the top spot among women for the second year in a row.
Among men, Microsoft founder Bill Gates and Chinese President Xi Jinping are the second and third most admired in the world, according to the latest YouGov results. Meanwhile, actress and activist Angelina Jolie is the second most admired woman in the world, and Queen Elizabeth II is the third, according to the poll results. Donald Trump, it’s worth noting, is the 15th most admired man in the world, according to the poll results — not exactly an impressive position.
YouGov says that more than 45,000 people in 42 countries and territories across the globe participated in the survey, suggesting that the popularity of the Obamas has truly global reach. According to the firm, respondents were asked two questions for each public figure presented, including whether they admire the individual in question and whether they admire them most of all. The Gallup polling organization has conducted a similar survey throughout recent decades, but they have only polled Americans. Even when paring down the field of potential respondents, Trump can’t get out ahead — in 2019, he was tied with Obama for the position of most admired man among Americans, according to the Gallup results. Each of them received 18 percent of the support, with the rest distributed across a lengthy list of other options.
Trump is, of course, currently running against someone with a close association to the Obamas: Barack’s former vice president, Joe Biden. The former VP consistently leads Trump in polls on the national level and in many important swing states. As of Friday afternoon, FiveThirtyEight estimates that Biden has a 77 percent chance of winning the election.
