59 countries have done it already
America could make history by electing its first female president—but many other countries around the world have already reached the same milestone. In the past half century, 59 countries have had women leaders, according to a 2016 report from the World Economic Forum. Among that group, Sri Lanka was the first to reach the milestone when Sirimavo Bandaranaike became the country’s prime minister in 1960.
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This graphic shows all the countries that have had a woman as their head of state or head of government in the last 50 years.
