Barack Obama image by ChameleonsEye/Shutterstock
It’s time once again for the annual Forbes’ 100 most powerful people list and once again the top of the list if scattered with names you would expect. Highlights of this year’s list include 17 heads of state, 27 CEOs and chairs, 28 billionaires, and nine women. British Prime Minister David Cameron and Pope Benedict XVI were the only people to drop out of last year’s top 10 and Cameron was still ranked 11th. Click on to see who did made this year’s top 10. (View the complete list and more here.)
10 Michael Duke
World Economic Forum, Wikimedia Commons
CEO of Walmart. #17 in 2012.
9 Mario Draghi
World Economic Forum, Wikimedia Commons
President of the European Central Bank. #8 in 2012.
8 Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz al Saud
www.kremlin.ru, Wikimedia Commons
King of Saudi Arabia. #7 in 2012.
7 Ben Bernanke
Chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve. #6 in 2012.
6 Bill Gates
World Economic Forum, Wikimedia Commons
Co-Chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
#1 in the Forbes 400. #2 in billionaires.
5 Angela Merkel
Aleph, Wikimedia Commons
Chancellor of Germany. #2 in 2012. #1 ranked in powerful women
4 Pope Francis
presidencia.gov.ar, Wikimedia Commons
Pope of the Roman Catholic Church. Unranked in 2012.
3 Xi Jinping
General Secretary of the Communist Party in China. #9 in 2012.
2 Barack Obama
President of the United States. #1 in 2012.
1 Vladimir Putin
www.kremlin.ru, Wikimedia Commons
President of Russia. #3 in 2012.