Why Michelle Obama Is the Most Powerful Woman in the World

Various and diverse rankings presenting the list of most influential actors or the list of global decision makers often leave us perplexed. What objective and subjective criteria are taken into account? The ranking of the world’s most powerful women, unveiled by Forbes on Thursday and reprinted on Le Figaro’s website, is a good example. The American magazine didn’t crown a head of state or an influential politician, but a first lady. Michelle Obama succeeds four-year defending champion Angela Merkel, now fourth place on the list. The German chancellor is suffering from dissent within her coalition. The chief American diplomat Hillary Clinton ranks fifth on the list. The Secretary of State finds herself accused of having too thin of a balance sheet. Another first lady appears on the list: Carla Bruni-Sarkozy in 35th place.

Forbes readily acknowledges that its ranking will make more than one person raise their eyebrows. The magazine revised its criteria to give less importance to wealth and power and more to creative influence and the entrepreneurial spirit. Forbes praises Michelle Obama for the qualities she embodies, including her charm and political skills, but especially her fight against childhood obesity.

Michelle Obama did not repeat Hillary Clinton’s mistakes

It is her Let’s Move! Campaign that prompted Forbes to propel Michelle Obama from 40th place on the list to first. The current first lady is more engaged than Laura Bush, the magazine considers. “She’s given a new generation of girls and women around the world a role model.” For Forbes, Let’s Move! is a success. The first lady has succeeded in convincing large food groups such as Kraft Foods and PepsiCo to eliminate 1.5 trillion calories from their products between now and 2015 through new recipes and reduced portions. Disney has also joined the fight. As part of a campaign called the “Magic of Healthy Living,” the group will distribute quotes from Michelle Obama and various celebrities.

Politically speaking, the wife of the American president also received a good report from Forbes. Glamor aside, she not only has the elegance of a first lady but intelligence as well. “She’s Jackie Kennedy with a law degree from Harvard,” writes the magazine, saluting her political discretion. Forbes cites the counter example of Hillary Clinton, who had been one of the driving forces behind the miserable 1993 Social Security reform. Avoiding traps, Michelle Obama has been able to retain a strong approval rating of 54 percent, stronger than that of her husband. Forbes remarks, that “in a telling sign of her charisma, the White House is putting her on the campaign trail to headline fundraising events in battleground states like California and Colorado.” Barack Obama is aware of this. The American president teased his predecessor Bill Clinton at the end of September, stating that he too “knows what it’s like to be married to somebody who’s smarter, somebody who’s better looking, somebody who’s just all around a little more impressive than you are.”