List of elected or appointed female heads of state

Map showing countries which since independence have had, excluding monarchs:

  Female head of government

  Female head of state

  Female head of state/government (combined)

  Female head of state and female head of government

This is a list of women who have been elected or appointed head of state of their respective countries. This list does not include female monarchs, nor does it include female heads of government who are not concurrently head of state, such as prime ministers.

Below the main list are separately listed female governors-general and French representatives of Andorra. As governors-general are appointed representatives of the monarch of the Commonwealth realms (currently Elizabeth II) and the French Representatives of Andorra are appointed representatives of the French Co-Prince of Andorra (currently François Hollande), they act as heads of state and carry out on a regular basis the functions and duties associated with such a role in the Commonwealth realms (excluding the United Kingdom, which has no governor-general, as the monarch of the Commonwealth realms primarily resides there) and Andorra, respectively.

To date, the country with most female Heads of State is San Marino (12, including two who served twice).

List of female heads of state

  Denotes incumbent head of state

• Italics denotes acting head of state

Name	Image	Country	Office	Mandate start	Mandate end	Term length
Khertek Anchimaa-Toka		Tannu Tuva	Chairperson of the Presidium of the Little Khural	1940-04-06 !6 April 1940	1944-10-11 !11 October 1944	70004000000000000004 years, 7002188000000000000188 days
Sükhbaataryn Yanjmaa		Mongolia	Acting Chairperson of the Presidium of the State Great Khural	1953-09-23 !23 September 1953	1954-07-07 !7 July 1954	50000000000000000000 years, 7002287000000000000287 days
Soong Ching-ling		People's Republic of China	Acting Co-Chairperson	1968-10-31 !31 October 1968	1972-04-24 !24 April 1972	70003000000000000003 years, 7002176000000000000176 days
Isabel Martínez de Perón		Argentina	President	1974-07-01 !1 July 1974	1976-03-24 !24 March 1976	70001000000000000001 year, 7002267000000000000267 days
Lidia Gueiler Tejada		Bolivia	Acting President	1979-11-16 !16 November 1979	1980-07-17 !17 July 1980	50000000000000000000 years, 7002244000000000000244 days
Vigdís Finnbogadóttir		Iceland	President	1980-08-01 !1 August 1980	1996-08-01 !1 August 1996	700116000000000000016 years, 50000000000000000000 days
Maria Lea Pedini-Angelini		San Marino	Captain Regent	1981-04-01 !1 April 1981	1981-10-01 !1 October 1981	50000000000000000000 years, 7002183000000000000183 days
Soong Ching-ling		People's Republic of China	Honorary President	1981-05-16 !16 May 1981	1981-05-28 !28 May 1981	50000000000000000000 years, 700112000000000000012 days
Agatha Barbara		Malta	President	1982-02-15 !15 February 1982	1987-02-15 !15 February 1987	70005000000000000005 years, 50000000000000000000 days
Gloriana Ranocchini		San Marino	Captain Regent	1984-04-01 !1 April 1984	1984-10-01 !1 October 1984	50000000000000000000 years, 7002183000000000000183 days
Carmen Pereira		Guinea-Bissau	Acting President of Guinea-Bissau	1984-05-14 !14 May 1984	1984-05-16 !16 May 1984	50000000000000000000 years, 70002000000000000002 days
Elisabeth Kopp		Switzerland	Member of the Swiss Federal Council	1984-10-21 !21 October 1984	1989-01-12 !12 January 1989	70004000000000000004 years, 700183000000000000083 days
Corazon Aquino		Philippines	President	1986-02-25 !25 February 1986	1992-06-30 !30 June 1992	70006000000000000006 years, 7002126000000000000126 days
Gloriana Ranocchini		San Marino	Captain Regent	1989-10-01 !1 October 1989	1990-04-01 !1 April 1990	50000000000000000000 years, 7002182000000000000182 days
Ertha Pascal-Trouillot		Haiti	Acting President	1990-03-13 !13 March 1990	1991-02-07 !7 February 1991	50000000000000000000 years, 7002331000000000000331 days
Sabine Bergmann-Pohl		East Germany	President of the People's Chamber	1990-04-05 !5 April 1990	1990-10-02 !2 October 1990	50000000000000000000 years, 7002180000000000000180 days
Violeta Chamorro		Nicaragua	President	1990-04-25 !25 April 1990	1997-01-10 !10 January 1997	70006000000000000006 years, 7002260000000000000260 days
Mary Robinson		Ireland	President	1990-12-03 !3 December 1990	1997-09-12 !12 September 1997	70006000000000000006 years, 7002283000000000000283 days
Edda Ceccoli		San Marino	Captain Regent	1991-10-01 !1 October 1991	1992-04-01 !1 April 1992	50000000000000000000 years, 7002183000000000000183 days
Ruth Dreifuss		Switzerland	Member of the Swiss Federal Council	1993-04-01 !1 April 1993	2002-12-31 !31 December 2002	70009000000000000009 years, 7002296000000000000296 days
Patrizia Busignani		San Marino	Captain Regent	1993-04-01 !1 April 1993	1993-10-01 !1 October 1993	50000000000000000000 years, 7002183000000000000183 days
Tansu Çiller		Turkey	President	1993-06-25 !25 June 1993	1996-03-06 !6 March 1996	70002000000000000002 years, 7002255000000000000255 days
Sylvie Kinigi		Burundi	Acting President	1993-10-27 !27 October 1993	1994-02-05 !5 February 1994	50000000000000000000 years, 7002101000000000000101 days
Chandrika Kumaratunga		Sri Lanka	President	1994-11-12 !12 November 1994	2005-11-19 !19 November 2005	700111000000000000011 years, 700117000000000000017 days
Ruth Perry		Liberia	Chairperson of the Council of State	1996-09-03 !3 September 1996	1997-08-02 !2 August 1997	50000000000000000000 years, 7002333000000000000333 days
Rosalía Arteaga Serrano		Ecuador	Acting President	1997-02-09 !9 February 1997	1997-02-11 !11 February 1997	50000000000000000000 years, 70002000000000000002 days
Mary McAleese		Ireland	President	1997-11-11 !11 November 1997	2011-11-10 !10 November 2011	700113000000000000013 years, 7002364000000000000364 days
Janet Jagan		Guyana	President	1997-12-19 !19 December 1997	1999-08-11 !11 August 1999	70001000000000000001 year, 7002235000000000000235 days
Ruth Metzler-Arnold		Switzerland	Member of the Swiss Federal Council	1999-05-1 !1 May 1999	2003-12-31 !31 December 2003	70004000000000000004 years, 7002295000000000000295 days
Rosa Zafferani		San Marino	Captain Regent	1999-04-01 !1 April 1999	1999-10-01 !1 October 1999	50000000000000000000 years, 7002183000000000000183 days
Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga		Latvia	President	1999-07-08 !8 July 1999	2007-07-07 !8 July 2007	70008000000000000008 years, 50000000000000000000 days
Mireya Moscoso		Panama	President	1999-09-01 !1 September 1999	2004-09-01 !1 September 2004	70005000000000000005 years, 50000000000000000000 days
Tarja Halonen		Finland	President	2000-03-01 !1 March 2000	2012-03-01 !1 March 2012	700112000000000000012 years, 50000000000000000000 days
Maria Domenica Michelotti		San Marino	Captain Regent	2000-04-01 !1 April 2000	2000-10-01 !1 October 2000	50000000000000000000 years, 7002183000000000000183 days
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo		Philippines	President	2001-01-20 !20 January 2001	2010-06-30 !30 June 2010	70009000000000000009 years, 7002161000000000000161 days
Megawati Sukarnoputri		Indonesia	President	2001-07-23 !23 July 2001	2004-10-20 !20 October 2004	70003000000000000003 years, 700189000000000000089 days
Micheline Calmy-Rey		Switzerland	Member of the Swiss Federal Council	2003-01-01 !1 January 2003	2011-12-31 !31 December 2011	70008000000000000008 years, 7002364000000000000364 days
Valeria Ciavatta		San Marino	Captain Regent	2003-10-01 !1 October 2003	2004-04-01 !1 April 2004	50000000000000000000 years, 7002183000000000000183 days
Nino Burjanadze		Georgia	Acting President	2003-11-23 !23 November 2003	2004-01-25 !25 January 2004	50000000000000000000 years, 700163000000000000063 days
Fausta Morganti		San Marino	Captain Regent	2005-04-01 !1 April 2005	2005-10-01 !1 October 2005	50000000000000000000 years, 7002183000000000000183 days
Ellen Johnson Sirleaf		Liberia	President	2006-01-16 !16 January 2006	Incumbent	70007000000000000007 years, 7002121000000000000121 days
Michelle Bachelet		Chile	President	2006-03-11 !11 March 2006	2010-03-11 !11 March 2010	70004000000000000004 years, 50000000000000000000 days
Doris Leuthard		Switzerland	Member of the Swiss Federal Council	2006-08-01 !1 August 2006	Incumbent	70006000000000000006 years, 7002289000000000000289 days
Dalia Itzik		Israel	Acting President	2007-01-25 !25 January 2007	2007-07-15 !15 July 2007	50000000000000000000 years, 7002171000000000000171 days
Pratibha Patil		India	President	2007-07-25 !25 July 2007	2012-07-25 !25 July 2012	70005000000000000005 years, 50000000000000000000 days
Nino Burjanadze		Georgia	Acting President	2007-11-25 !25 November 2007	2008-01-20 !20 January 2008	50000000000000000000 years, 700156000000000000056 days
Cristina Fernández de Kirchner		Argentina	President	2007-12-10 !10 December 2007	Incumbent	70005000000000000005 years, 7002158000000000000158 days
Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf		Switzerland	Member of the Swiss Federal Council	2008-01-01 !1 January 2008	Incumbent	70005000000000000005 years, 7002136000000000000136 days
Rosa Zafferani		San Marino	Captain Regent	2008-04-01 !1 April 2008	2008-10-01 !1 October 2008	50000000000000000000 years, 7002183000000000000183 days
Assunta Meloni		San Marino	Captain Regent	2008-10-01 !1 October 2008	2009-04-01 !1 April 2009	50000000000000000000 years, 7002182000000000000182 days
Rose Francine Rogombé		Gabon	Acting President	2009-06-10 !10 June 2009	2009-10-16 !16 October 2009	50000000000000000000 years, 7002128000000000000128 days
Dalia Grybauskaitė		Lithuania	President	2009-07-12 !12 July 2009	Incumbent	70003000000000000003 years, 7002309000000000000309 days
Roza Otunbayeva		Kyrgyzstan	President	2010-04-07 !7 April 2010	2011-12-01 !1 December 2011	70001000000000000001 year, 7002238000000000000238 days
Laura Chinchilla		Costa Rica	President	2010-05-08 !8 May 2010	Incumbent	70003000000000000003 years, 70009000000000000009 days
Simonetta Sommaruga		Switzerland	Member of the Swiss Federal Council	2010-11-01 !1 November 2010	Incumbent	70002000000000000002 years, 7002197000000000000197 days
Dilma Rousseff		Brazil	President	2011-01-01 !1 January 2011	Incumbent	70002000000000000002 years, 7002136000000000000136 days
Maria Luisa Berti		San Marino	Captain Regent	2011-04-01 !1 April 2011	2011-10-01 !1 October 2011	50000000000000000000 years, 7002183000000000000183 days
Atifete Jahjaga		Kosovo	President	2011-04-07 !7 April 2011	Incumbent	70002000000000000002 years, 700140000000000000040 days
Monique Ohsan Bellepeau		Mauritius	Acting President	2012-03-31 !31 March 2012	2012-07-21 !21 July 2012	50000000000000000000 years, 7002112000000000000112 days
Slavica Đukić Dejanović		Serbia	Acting President	2012-04-05 !5 April 2012	2012-05-31 !31 May 2012	50000000000000000000 years, 700156000000000000056 days
Joyce Banda		Malawi	President	2012-04-07 !7 April 2012	Incumbent	70001000000000000001 year, 700140000000000000040 days
Denise Bronzetti		San Marino	Captain Regent	2012-10-01 !1 October 2012	2013-04-01 !1 April 2013	50000000000000000000 years, 7002182000000000000182 days
Park Geun-hye		South Korea	President	2013-02-25 !25 February 2013	Incumbent	50000000000000000000 years, 700181000000000000081 days
Antonella Mularoni		San Marino	Captain Regent	2013-04-01 !1 April 2013	Incumbent	50000000000000000000 years, 700146000000000000046 days

List of female representatives of heads of state

  Denotes incumbent representative of head of state

• Italics denotes acting representative of head of state

Name	Image	Country	Office	Mandate start	Mandate end	Term length
Dame Elmira Minita Gordon		Belize	Governor-General	1981-09-21 !21 September 1981	1993-11-17 !17 November 1993	700112000000000000012 years, 700157000000000000057 days
Jeanne Sauvé		Canada	Governor General	1984-05-14 !14 May 1984	1990-01-29 !29 January 1990	70005000000000000005 years, 7002260000000000000260 days
Dame Nita Barrow		Barbados	Governor-General	1990-06-06 !6 June 1990	1995-12-19 !19 December 1995	70005000000000000005 years, 7002196000000000000196 days
Dame Catherine Tizard		New Zealand	Governor-General	1990-12-13 !13 December 1990	1996-03-21 !21 March 1996	70005000000000000005 years, 700199000000000000099 days
Dame Pearlette Louisy		Saint Lucia	Governor-General	1997-09-17 !17 September 1997	Incumbent	700115000000000000015 years, 7002242000000000000242 days
Adrienne Clarkson		Canada	Governor General	1999-10-07 !7 October 1999	2005-08-27 !27 September 2005	70005000000000000005 years, 7002324000000000000324 days
Dame Sian Elias		New Zealand	Administrator of the Government (acting Governor-General)	2001-03-22 !22 March 2001	2001-04-04 !4 April 2001	50000000000000000000 years, 700113000000000000013 days
Dame Silvia Cartwright		New Zealand	Governor-General	2001-04-04 !4 April 2001	2006-08-04 !4 August 2006	70005000000000000005 years, 7002122000000000000122 days
Dame Ivy Dumont		The Bahamas	Governor-General	2001-11-13 !11 November 2001	2005-11-30 !30 November 2005	70004000000000000004 years, 700119000000000000019 days
Monica Dacon		Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	acting Governor-General	2002-06-03 !3 June 2002	2002-09-02 !2 September 2002	50000000000000000000 years, 700191000000000000091 days
Michaëlle Jean		Canada	Governor General	2005-09-27 !27 September 2005	2010-10-01 !1 October 2010	70005000000000000005 years, 70004000000000000004 days
Dame Sian Elias		New Zealand	Administrator of the Government (acting Governor-General)	2006-04-04 !4 April 2006	2006-08-23 !23 August 2006	50000000000000000000 years, 7002141000000000000141 days
Emmanuelle Mignon		Andorra	Representative of the French Co-Prince	2007-06-06 !6 June 2007	2007-09-24 !24 September 2008	70001000000000000001 year, 7002110000000000000110 days
Dame Louise Lake-Tack		Antigua and Barbuda	Governor-General	2007-07-17 !17 July 2007	Incumbent	70005000000000000005 years, 7002304000000000000304 days
Quentin Bryce		Australia	Governor-General	2008-09-05 !5 September 2008	Incumbent	70004000000000000004 years, 7002254000000000000254 days
Dame Sian Elias		New Zealand	Administrator of the Government (acting Governor-General)	2011-08-23 !23 August 2011	2011-08-31 !31 August 2011	50000000000000000000 years, 70008000000000000008 days
Sylvie Hubac		Andorra	Representative of the French Co-Prince	2012-05-15 !15 May 2012	Incumbent	70001000000000000001 year, 70002000000000000002 days
Sandra Mason		Barbados	acting Governor-General	2012-05-30 !30 May 2012	2012-06-01 !1 June 2012	50000000000000000000 years, 70002000000000000002 days
Cécile La Grenade		Grenada	Governor-General	2013-05-07 !7 May 2013	Incumbent	50000000000000000000 years, 700110000000000000010 days

See also

• Council of Women World Leaders
• List of current state leaders by date of assumption of office
• List of elected or appointed female deputy heads of state
• List of elected or appointed female heads of government
  • List of elected or appointed female deputy heads of government
• List of the first female holders of political offices

External links

• Women Heads of State
• Women Presidents and Women Governors-General (Zárate's Political Collections)
• Council of Women World Leaders
• Female Presidents