(NEXSTAR) — President Donald Trump and former first lady Michelle Obama topped this year’s list of the most admired men and women, according to a new Gallup poll.
Trump edged out Barack Obama for the 2020 honor, ending a 12-year run for the former president, who is tied with Dwight Eisenhower for the most ever.
Last year, Trump and Obama tied for the 2019 honor.
For Michelle Obama, 2020 was the third year in a row that she has held the title, with Vice President-elect Kamala Harris ranking second.
The men
When asked which man in the world they admire most, the incumbent president tends to be top of mind for most Americans, Gallup said.
“In the 74 times Gallup has asked the open-ended most admired man question since 1946, the incumbent president has topped the list 60 times,” it said.
Trump scored votes from 18% of U.S. adults, with Barack Obama placing second with 15%, according to the analytics company.
In third place was President-elect Joe Biden with 6%.
The women
Women who were first lady have commonly been named most admired woman.
“Gallup has asked the public to name the woman they admire most 71 times since 1948, with either a current (18) or a former (39) first lady winning a total of 57 times,” the company said.
Michelle Obama received 10% of the votes, followed by Harris with 6% of respondents.
Current first lady Melania Trump, who has been in the top 10 each of the past four years but has never finished first, gained the No. 3 spot with 4%. She joins Bess Truman and Lady Bird Johnson as former or current first ladies to miss receiving the honor.
Political divisions reflected
The votes for the top admired men were divided among party lines — 48% of Republicans chose Trump, up from 45% last year, and 32% of Democrats chose Obama, down from 41% last year. Biden was also favored by Democrats with 13%.
In addition, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, was favored by 5% of Democrats but only 1% of Republicans, “further contributing to Democrats’ relative dispersion of choices,” Gallup said. Fauci received 3% overall.
