Who’s more powerful: the autocratic leader of a former superpower or the handcuffed commander in chief of the most dominant country in the world? This year the votes for the World’s Most Powerful went to Russian President Vladimir Putin. He climbs one spot ahead of U.S. President Barack Obama, who held the title in 2012.
Rank | Name/Title | Organization | Age |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Vladimir PutinPresident |
Russia | 61 |
2 | Barack ObamaPresident |
United States | 52 |
3 | Xi JinpingGeneral Secretary, Communist Party |
China | 60 |
4 | Pope FrancisPope |
Roman Catholic Church | 76 |
5 | Angela MerkelChancellor |
Germany | 59 |
6 | Bill GatesCo-Chair |
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation | 58 |
7 | Ben BernankeChairman, Federal Reserve |
United States | 59 |
8 | Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz Al SaudKing |
Saudi Arabia | 89 |
9 | Mario DraghiPresident |
European Central Bank | 66 |
10 | Michael DukeCEO |
Wal-Mart Stores | 63 |
11 | David CameronPrime Minister |
United Kingdom | 47 |
12 | Carlos Slim Helu & familyHonorary Chairman |
América Móvil | 73 |
13 | Warren BuffettCEO |
Berkshire Hathaway | 83 |
14 | Li KeqiangPremier |
China | 58 |
15 | Jeff BezosCEO |
Amazon.com | 49 |
16 | Rex TillersonCEO |
Exxon Mobil | 61 |
17 | Sergey BrinCofounder, Director Of Special Projects |
40 | |
17 | Larry PageCEO |
40 | |
18 | Francois HollandePresident |
France | 59 |
19 | Timothy CookCEO |
Apple | 52 |
20 | Dilma RousseffPresident |
Brazil | 65 |
21 | Sonia GandhiPresident, Indian National Congress |
India | 66 |
22 | Jamie DimonCEO |
JPMorgan Chase | 57 |
23 | Ali Hoseini-KhameneiGrand Ayatollah |
Iran | 74 |
24 | Mark ZuckerbergCofounder, Chairman and CEO |
29 | |
25 | Jeffrey ImmeltCEO |
General Electric | 57 |
26 | Benjamin NetanyahuPrime Minister |
Israel | 64 |
27 | Lloyd BlankfeinCEO |
Goldman Sachs Group | 59 |
28 | Manmohan SinghPrime Minister |
India | 81 |
29 | Michael BloombergMayor, New York City |
United States | 71 |
30 | Li Ka-shingChairman |
Hutchison Whampoa | 85 |
31 | Charles KochCEO |
Koch Industries | 77 |
31 | David KochExecutive Vice President |
Koch Industries | 73 |
32 | Ban Ki-moonSecretary-General |
United Nations | 69 |
33 | Rupert Murdoch & familyChairman and CEO |
News Corp | 82 |
34 | Khalifa bin Zayed Al-NahyanPresident |
United Arab Emirates | 65 |
35 | Christine LagardeManaging Director |
International Monetary Fund | 57 |
36 | Xuedong DingChairman, China Investment Corp |
China | 53 |
37 | Enrique Pena NietoPresident |
Mexico | 47 |
38 | Mukesh AmbaniChairman |
Reliance Industries | 56 |
39 | Haruhiko KurodaGovernor, Bank of Japan |
Japan | 69 |
40 | Ali Al-NaimiOil Minister |
Saudi Arabia | 78 |
41 | Lee Kun-HeeChairman |
Samsung Group | 71 |
42 | Larry FinkCofounder, CEO |
BlackRock | 60 |
43 | Bill ClintonChairman |
Clinton Global Initiative | 67 |
44 | Akio ToyodaCEO |
Toyota Motor | 57 |
45 | Masayoshi SonCEO |
Softbank | 56 |
46 | Kim Jong-unSupreme Leader |
North Korea | 30 |
47 | Elon MuskFounder, CEO |
Space Exploration Technologies Corp. | 42 |
48 | Terry GouCEO |
Hon Hai Precision | 63 |
49 | Martin WinterkornChairman |
Volkswagen Group | 66 |
50 | Jim Yong KimPresident |
World Bank | 53 |
51 | Lakshmi MittalChairman and CEO |
ArcelorMittal | 63 |
52 | Geun-hye ParkPresident |
South Korea | 61 |
53 | Dmitry MedvedevPrime Minister |
Russia | 48 |
54 | Bernard Arnault & familyChairman and CEO |
LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton | 64 |
55 | Bill GrossCofounder and Co-Chief Investment Officer |
Pacific Investment Management Company LLC | 69 |
56 | Virginia RomettyCEO |
IBM | 55 |
57 | Shinzo AbePrime Minister |
Japan | 59 |
58 | Larry EllisonCEO |
Oracle | 69 |
59 | Margaret ChanDirector-General |
World Health Organization | 66 |
60 | Igor SechinChairman |
Rosneft | 53 |
61 | Robin LiFounder and CEO |
Baidu | 44 |
62 | John RobertsChief Justice, U.S. Supreme Court |
United States | 58 |
63 | Alisher UsmanovFounder |
Metalloinvest | 60 |
64 | Aliko DangoteCEO |
Dangote Group | 56 |
65 | Reid HoffmanPartner |
Greylock Partners | 46 |
66 | John BoehnerSpeaker, U.S. House of Representatives |
United States | 63 |
67 | Joaquin Guzman LoeraDrug Trafficker |
Sinaloa Cartel | 56 |
68 | Jill AbramsonExecutive Editor |
New York Times Co. | 59 |
69 | Joseph BlatterPresident |
FIFA | 77 |
70 | Yngve SlyngstadCEO, Norges Bank Investment Management |
Norway | 50 |
71 | Mohammed IbrahimFounder |
Mo Ibrahim Foundation | 67 |
72 | Janet YellenVice Chairman, Federal Reserve |
Washington, United States | 67 |
Source: Forbes