9 Female Politicians Who Are Turning the World into a Better Place

Credit: Shutterstock (2)

9 Female Politicians Who Are Turning the World into a Better Place

Who runs the world? Girls! In the last decade, many women have been slaying at United States politics. Take Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez for example — she became the youngest women to be elected to Congress. Then there’s former first lady Michelle Obama who has been an advocate for female educations. Read on to learn about these women and other boss ladies who’ve been making the world a better place.

Credit: Jose Luis Magana/AP/Shutterstock

Michelle Obama

By many estimates, the former first lady, 55, did an even better job in her role than her husband. The graduate of Harvard Law School continues to advocate for healthy families, service members and their families and girls’ education. On International Women’s Day in 2018 she partnered with Refinery29 to exchange stories with young women from Nepal, Ghana, Guatemala and her hometown of Chicago. Her memoir Becoming also became the best-selling book of the year. 

Credit: Paul Sancya/AP/Shutterstock

Hillary Clinton

She may have lost the 2016 presidential election but, as she has been for the past 16 years, Hillary Clinton, is still the most admired woman in America, according to a 2017 Gallup poll. A longtime campaigner for gender equality, healthcare reform and legal aid for low-income and marginalized groups, the Chicago native was a hugely successful lawyer and savvy investor long before becoming first lady, New York senator and U.S. secretary of state. And, no, she hasn’t been hiking in the woods for the past two years. In 2017, the 72-year-old woman renowned for her boundless energy and determination cofounded Onward Together to train future leaders.

Credit: Shutterstock

The U.S. Supreme Court Justices

As a real-life justice league, it’s tough to find a prosecutorial party more worthy of hero-worship than the women of the Supreme Court. Shout out to the Notorious Ruth Bader Ginsburg? Sustained! But also props to the former dean of Harvard Law School (Elena Kagan), the first Latina on the court (Sonia Sotomayor) and of course, the first woman to serve on the highest court in the land (Sandra Day O’Connor), who retired in 2006.

Credit: Evan Agostini/Invision/AP/Shutterstock

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

She made history in 2018. At just 29 years old, Ocasio-Cortez became the youngest woman ever elected to Congress when she won a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives for New York’s 14th District. Time magazine called her primary win against 10-term incumbent Joe Crowley “the biggest upset of 2018.” Before she ran for office, Ocasio-Cortez, now 30, worked in education and as an organizer for Senator Bernie Sanders’ 2016 presidential campaign. She also worked as a bartender to help her struggling family keep their home.

Credit: Michael Brochstein/SOPA Images/Shutterstock

Nikki Haley

As the daughter of Indian immigrants, Nikki Haley became the first female governor of South Carolina. She also acted as the U.S. Ambassador for the United Nations from 2017 to 2018. Haley, 47, currently acts as on the board of directors of Boeing, an aerospace company.

Credit: MICHAEL REYNOLDS/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

Nancy Pelosi

She’s a target of criticism — what high-profile politician isn’t? — but how can you argue with this statement Nancy Pelosi gave the Los Angeles Times in 2017: “It’s your problem if you don’t recognize that women are ready to do any job.” The first woman to lead a major party in Congress has fulfilled a lifelong dream of a career in politics — the daughter of a Maryland political family, she attended John F. Kennedy’s inaugural address in 1961. In 2019, Pelosi, 79, became the first woman in U.S. history to become the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives. “This is a moment for which we have waited more than 200 years …” she said. “For our daughters and our granddaughters, the sky is the limit, anything is possible for them.”