Two presidents who squarely sit on opposite sides of the aisle have been brought together by the magnitude of gratitude for the pair.
Former President Barack Obama and President Donald Trump have tied in the Gallup poll for most admired men. Since 1948, Gallup has polled America through a list of open-ended questions about which men and women living across the globe deserve the most adoration. This year's poll was conducted from Dec. 2 to Dec. 15.
This is Obama’s 12th time in the top spot, but this is the current president’s first time topping the list.
“Americans' choice for most admired man this year is sharply divided along party lines: 41% of Democrats name Obama, while 45% of Republicans choose Trump. Relatively few Democrats choose Trump and relatively few Republicans pick Obama, while independents’ choices are divided about equally between the two men,” according to the Gallup poll news release.
The top spots beyond first place captured only about 2% or less of the pollsters’ admiration. After Trump and Obama, former President Jimmy Carter, businessman Elon Musk, philanthropist Bill Gates, Pope Francis, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, California Rep. Adam Schiff, the Dalai Lama and investor Warren Buffett round out the top 10.
Typically, the incumbent president snags the top spot on Gallup’s poll, with that being the case 58 out of the last 72 polls.
"Trump is more popular now than he was in the past two years, with a 45% job approval rating, among his best as president," Gallup researchers wrote. "Coincident with the rise in his job approval rating, the 18% of Americans currently naming Trump as the most admired man is also up, from 13% in 2018 and 14% in 2017."
Obama holds the distinction of being named 12 times as most admired man with former President Dwight Eisenhower. Both were named most admired all eight years in office and the following three years post-presidency.
An Obama won the title of ‘most admired’ woman as well
For the second year in a row, Michelle Obama was named in Gallup’s other annual ranking of most admired women. She broke former Sen. Hillary Clinton’s streak of topping the list after 17 years. Obama garnered 10% of the vote this year, down from her 15% the previous year. Last year’s poll was conducted shortly after the release of her best-selling autobiography.
Current first lady Melania Trump finished with 5% of the vote, making her the second most admired woman. Media mogul Oprah Winfrey, Clinton and teen climate change activist Greta Thunberg were named by 3% of U.S. adults each, tying for third place. The remainder of the top 10 for women includes Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley.
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