List of the first women holders of political offices
| Part of a series on |
| Women in society |
|---|
.svg) |
This is a list of political offices which have been held by a female, with details of the first female holder of each office. It is ordered by country, by dates of appointment. Former countries, such as Yugoslavia, are also listed.
 |
Africa
South Americas
North and Central America and Caribbean
Asia
Europe
Oceania
International organizations
- President of the European Parliament – Simone Veil – 1979[1]
- President-in-Office of the European Council – Margaret Thatcher – 1981[citation needed]
- European Commissioner – Christiane Scrivener / Vasso Papandreou – 1989[2]
- Leader of the Socialist Group and of any major party – Pauline Green – 1994[3]
- Co Vice-President of the European Commission – Loyola de Palacio – 1999[citation needed]
- First Vice-President of the European Commission – Margot Wallström – 2004[citation needed]
- High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy – Catherine Ashton – 2009 [citation needed]
- Substitute Delegate and Ambassador to the League of Nations – Elena Văcărescu – 1922 [citation needed]
- Permanent Delegate and Ambassador to the League of Nations – Elena Văcărescu – 1924 [citation needed]
- Head of the section of Welfare Policy – Alva Myrdal – 1949
- Chairman of UNESCO's social science section – Alva Myrdal – 1950
- President of the United Nations General Assembly – Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit – 1953[4]
- Permanent Representative – Agda Rössel (Permanent Representative of Sweden to the United Nations) – 1958
- Head of the United Nations Children's Fund – Carol Bellamy – 1995 [citation needed]
- United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights – Mary Robinson – 1997 [citation needed]
- Deputy Secretary-General – Louise Fréchette – 1998[5]
- Executive Director of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme – Anna Tibaijuka – 2000 [citation needed]
- Under-Secretary-General – Inga-Britt Ahlenius – 2005 [citation needed]
- Assistant-Secretary-General – Helvi Sipilä – 1972
- President of the International Court of Justice – Rosalyn Higgins – 2006 [citation needed]
- Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme – Helen Clark – 2009
- Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund – Christine Lagarde – 2011