# List of elected and appointed female heads of state and government

The following is a list of women who have been elected or appointed head of state or government of their respective countries since the interwar period (1918–1939). The first list includes female presidents who are heads of state and may also be heads of government, as well as female heads of government who are not concurrently head of state, such as prime ministers. The list does not include Queens regnant who are heads of state (but not of government).
Khertek Anchimaa-Toka, of the mostly unrecognized and now defunct Tuvan People's Republic, is regarded as the "first ever elected woman head of state in the world", although not in multiparty, free and fair elections. The wife of the nation's Supreme Leader, she is the first woman to be elected Chairman of a country. She became the chairwoman of the country's presidium in 1940.
The first woman to be elected as prime minister of a country was Sirimavo Bandaranaike of Ceylon (present-day Sri Lanka), when she led her party to victory in the July 1960 general election.
The first woman to serve as president of a country was Isabel Perón of Argentina, who served as the country's vice president and succeeded to the presidency in July 1974 upon the death of her husband.
The first woman elected president of a country was Vigdís Finnbogadóttir of Iceland, who won the 1980 presidential election as well as three subsequent elections, remaining in office for a total of 16 years, which makes her the longest-serving non-hereditary female head of state in history.
The first democratically elected female prime minister of a Muslim majority country was Benazir Bhutto of Pakistan, who led her party to victory in the 1988 general election and later in 1993, making her the first woman democratically elected leader of any Muslim nation. Bhutto was also the first of only two non-hereditary female world leaders who gave birth to a child while serving in office, the other being Jacinda Ardern of New Zealand.
The longest-tenured female non-hereditary head of government is Sheikh Hasina of Bangladesh. She served as the country's prime minister from June 1996 to July 2001 and again from January 2009 until August 2024, for a combined total of over 20 years.
The prime ministers of Equatorial Guinea, Mozambique, Namibia, Peru, and Uganda are included in the list of elected or appointed female deputy heads of government but not in the list of elected or appointed female deputy heads of state, as they are neither heads of government, nor deputy heads of state due to the existence of the office of vice president in these countries, whereas the prime ministers of South Korea and Sri Lanka (post-1978) are included in both of those lists.
Currently, Barbados, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Iceland are the only republics in the world where both the serving head of state and head of government are women. Honduras, the Marshall Islands, Mexico, Peru, and Tanzania are republics where the female President is the combined head of state and government.

## Elected or appointed female chief executives

This list includes women who were appointed by a governing committee or parliament where heads of state or government are not directly elected by citizens. The list does not include women chosen by a hereditary monarch. Interim heads of state or government are listed in italics.
| Name | Country | Office | Mandate start | Mandate end | Term length | Head of state or government | Executive or non-executive |
| Khertek Anchimaa-Toka | Tannu Tuva | Chairwoman of the Presidium of the Little Khural | 6 April 1940 | 11 October 1944 | 4 years, 188 days | Head of state | |
| Sirimavo Bandaranaike | Ceylon/ Sri Lanka | Prime Minister | 21 July 1960 | 27 March 1965 | 4 years, 249 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Sirimavo Bandaranaike | Ceylon/ Sri Lanka | Prime Minister | 29 May 1970 | 23 July 1977 | 7 years, 55 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Indira Gandhi | India | Prime Minister | 24 January 1966 | 24 April 1977 | 11 years, 90 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Indira Gandhi | India | Prime Minister | 15 January 1980 | 31 October 1984 (assassinated) | 4 years, 290 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Golda Meir | Israel | Prime Minister | 17 March 1969 | 3 June 1974 | 5 years, 78 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Isabel Perón | Argentina | President | 1 July 1974 | 24 March 1976 | 1 year, 267 days | Head of state and government | Executive |
| Elisabeth Domitien | Central African Republic | Prime Minister | 2 January 1975 | 7 April 1976 | 1 year, 96 days | Head of government | |
| Margaret Thatcher | United Kingdom | Prime Minister | 4 May 1979 | 28 November 1990 | 11 years, 208 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Maria de Lourdes Pintasilgo | Portugal | Prime Minister | 1 August 1979 | 3 January 1980 | 155 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Lidia Gueiler Tejada | Bolivia | President | 16 November 1979 | 17 July 1980 | 244 days | Head of state | Executive |
| Eugenia Charles | Dominica | Prime Minister | 21 July 1980 | 14 June 1995 | 14 years, 328 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Vigdís Finnbogadóttir | Iceland | President | 1 August 1980 | 1 August 1996 | 16 years, 0 days | Head of state | |
| Gro Harlem Brundtland | Norway | Prime Minister | 4 February 1981 | 14 October 1981 | 252 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Gro Harlem Brundtland | Norway | Prime Minister | 9 May 1986 | 16 October 1989 | 3 years, 160 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Gro Harlem Brundtland | Norway | Prime Minister | 3 November 1990 | 25 October 1996 | 5 years, 357 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Soong Ching-ling | China | Honorary President | 16 May 1981 | 28 May 1981 | 12 days | Head of state | |
| Agatha Barbara | Malta | President | 15 February 1982 | 15 February 1987 | 5 years | Head of state | |
| Milka Planinc | Yugoslavia | Prime Minister | 16 May 1982 | 15 May 1986 | 3 years, 364 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Corazon Aquino | Philippines | President | 25 February 1986 | 30 June 1992 | 6 years, 126 days | Head of state and government | Executive |
| Stella Sigcau | Transkei | Prime Minister | 5 October 1987 | 30 December 1987 | 86 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Benazir Bhutto | Pakistan | Prime Minister | 2 December 1988 | 6 July 1990 | 1 year, 216 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Benazir Bhutto | Pakistan | Prime Minister | 19 October 1993 | 5 November 1996 | 3 years, 17 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Ertha Pascal-Trouillot | Haiti | President | 13 March 1990 | 7 February 1991 | 331 days | Head of state | |
| Kazimira Prunskienė | Lithuania | Prime Minister | 11 March 1990 | 10 January 1991 | 299 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Sabine Bergmann-Pohl | East Germany | President of the People's Chamber | 5 April 1990 | 2 October 1990 | 180 days | Head of state | |
| Violeta Chamorro | Nicaragua | President | 25 April 1990 | 10 January 1997 | 6 years, 260 days | Head of state and government | Executive |
| Mary Robinson | Ireland | President | 3 December 1990 | 12 September 1997 | 6 years, 283 days | Head of state | |
| Khaleda Zia | Bangladesh | Prime Minister | 20 March 1991 | 30 March 1996 | 5 years, 10 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Khaleda Zia | Bangladesh | Prime Minister | 10 October 2001 | 29 October 2006 | 5 years, 19 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Édith Cresson | France | Prime Minister | 15 May 1991 | 2 April 1992 | 323 days | Head of government | |
| Hanna Suchocka | Poland | Prime Minister | 11 July 1992 | 25 October 1993 | 1 year, 106 days | Head of government | |
| Tansu Çiller | Turkey | Prime Minister | 13 June 1993 | 6 March 1996 | 2 years, 267 days | Head of government | |
| Kim Campbell | Canada | Prime Minister | 25 June 1993 | 4 November 1993 | 132 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Sylvie Kinigi | Burundi | Prime Minister | 10 July 1993 | 7 February 1994 | 109 days | Head of government | |
| Agathe Uwilingiyimana | Rwanda | Prime Minister | 18 July 1993 | 7 April 1994 (assassinated) | 263 days | Head of government | |
| Chandrika Kumaratunga | Sri Lanka | President | 12 November 1994 | 19 November 2005 | 11 years, 7 days | Head of state and government | Executive |
| Claudette Werleigh | Haiti | Prime Minister | 7 November 1995 | 27 February 1996 | 112 days | Head of government | |
| Sheikh Hasina | Bangladesh | Prime Minister | 23 June 1996 | 15 July 2001 | 5 years, 22 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Sheikh Hasina | Bangladesh | Prime Minister | 6 January 2009 | 5 August 2024 | 15 years, 212 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Ruth Perry | Liberia | Chairwoman of the Council of State | 3 September 1996 | 2 August 1997 | 333 days | Head of state and government | Executive |
| Rosalía Arteaga | Ecuador | President | 9 February 1997 | 11 February 1997 | 2 days | Head of state and government | Executive |
| Mary McAleese | Ireland | President | 11 November 1997 | 10 November 2011 | 13 years, 364 days | Head of state | |
| Jenny Shipley | New Zealand | Prime Minister | 8 December 1997 | 10 December 1999 | 2 years, 2 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Janet Jagan | Guyana | President | 19 December 1997 | 11 August 1999 | 1 year, 235 days | Head of state and government | Executive |
| Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga | Latvia | President | 8 July 1999 | 8 July 2007 | 8 years | Head of state | |
| Mireya Moscoso | Panama | President | 1 September 1999 | 1 September 2004 | 5 years | Head of state and government | Executive |
| Helen Clark | New Zealand | Prime Minister | 10 December 1999 | 19 November 2008 | 8 years, 350 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Tarja Halonen | Finland | President | 1 March 2000 | 1 March 2012 | 12 years | Head of state | |
| Gloria Macapagal Arroyo | Philippines | President | 20 January 2001 | 30 June 2010 | 9 years, 161 days | Head of state and government | Executive |
| Mame Madior Boye | Senegal | Prime Minister | 3 March 2001 | 4 November 2002 | 1 year, 246 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Megawati Sukarnoputri | Indonesia | President | 23 July 2001 | 20 October 2004 | 3 years, 89 days | Head of state and government | Executive |
| Maria das Neves | São Tomé and Príncipe | Prime Minister | 3 October 2002 | 18 September 2004 | 1 year, 351 days | Head of government | |
| Anneli Jäätteenmäki | Finland | Prime Minister | 17 April 2003 | 24 June 2003 | 68 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Yulia Tymoshenko | Ukraine | Prime Minister | 24 January 2005 | 6 September 2005 | 225 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Yulia Tymoshenko | Ukraine | Prime Minister | 18 December 2007 | 3 March 2010 | 2 years, 75 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Maria do Carmo Silveira | São Tomé and Príncipe | Prime Minister | 8 June 2005 | 21 April 2006 | 317 days | Head of government | |
| Angela Merkel | Germany | Chancellor | 22 November 2005 | 8 December 2021 | 16 years, 16 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Ellen Johnson Sirleaf | Liberia | President | 16 January 2006 | 22 January 2018 | 12 years, 6 days | Head of state and government | Executive |
| Michelle Bachelet | Chile | President | 11 March 2006 | 11 March 2010 | 4 years | Head of state and government | Executive |
| Michelle Bachelet | Chile | President | 11 March 2014 | 11 March 2018 | 4 years | Head of state and government | Executive |
| Portia Simpson-Miller | Jamaica | Prime Minister | 30 March 2006 | 11 September 2007 | 1 year, 165 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Portia Simpson-Miller | Jamaica | Prime Minister | 5 January 2012 | 3 March 2016 | 4 years, 58 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Pratibha Devisingh Patil | India | President | 25 July 2007 | 25 July 2012 | 5 years | Head of state | |
| Cristina Fernández de Kirchner | Argentina | President | 10 December 2007 | 10 December 2015 | 8 years | Head of state and government | Executive |
| Zinaida Greceanîi | Moldova | Prime Minister | 31 March 2008 | 14 September 2009 | 1 year, 167 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Michèle Pierre-Louis | Haiti | Prime Minister | 5 September 2008 | 11 November 2009 | 1 year, 67 days | Head of government | |
| Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir | Iceland | Prime Minister | 1 February 2009 | 23 May 2013 | 4 years, 111 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Jadranka Kosor | Croatia | Prime Minister | 6 July 2009 | 23 December 2011 | 2 years, 170 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Dalia Grybauskaitė | Lithuania | President | 12 July 2009 | 12 July 2019 | 10 years | Head of state | |
| Roza Otunbayeva | Kyrgyzstan | President | 7 April 2010 | 1 December 2011 | 1 year, 238 days | Head of state | |
| Laura Chinchilla | Costa Rica | President | 8 May 2010 | 8 May 2014 | 4 years | Head of state and government | Executive |
| Kamla Persad-Bissessar | Trinidad and Tobago | Prime Minister | 26 May 2010 | 9 September 2015 | 5 years, 106 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Mari Kiviniemi | Finland | Prime Minister | 22 June 2010 | 22 June 2011 | 1 year | Head of government | Executive |
| Julia Gillard | Australia | Prime Minister | 24 June 2010 | 27 June 2013 | 3 years, 3 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Iveta Radičová | Slovakia | Prime Minister | 8 July 2010 | 4 April 2012 | 1 year, 271 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Dilma Rousseff | Brazil | President | 1 January 2011 | 31 August 2016 Suspended 12 May 2016 | 5 years, 243 days 5 years, 139 days | Head of state and government | Executive |
| Cissé Mariam Kaïdama Sidibé | Mali | Prime Minister | 3 April 2011 | 22 March 2012 | 354 days | Head of government | |
| Atifete Jahjaga | Kosovo | President | 7 April 2011 | 7 April 2016 | 5 years | Head of state | |
| Yingluck Shinawatra | Thailand | Prime Minister | 5 August 2011 | 7 May 2014 | 2 years, 275 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Helle Thorning-Schmidt | Denmark | Prime Minister | 3 October 2011 | 28 June 2015 | 3 years, 268 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Joyce Banda | Malawi | President | 7 April 2012 | 31 May 2014 | 2 years, 54 days | Head of state and government | Executive |
| Park Geun-hye | South Korea | President | 25 February 2013 | 10 March 2017 Suspended 9 December 2016 | 4 years, 13 days 3 years, 288 days | Head of state and government | Executive |
| Alenka Bratušek | Slovenia | Prime Minister | 20 March 2013 | 18 September 2014 | 1 year, 182 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Tatiana Turanskaya | Transnistria | Prime Minister | 10 June 2013 | 13 October 2015 | 2 years, 125 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Tatiana Turanskaya | Transnistria | Prime Minister | 30 November 2015 | 2 December 2015 | 2 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Sibel Siber | Northern Cyprus | Prime Minister | 13 June 2013 | 2 September 2013 | 81 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Aminata Touré | Senegal | Prime Minister | 1 September 2013 | 8 July 2014 | 310 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Erna Solberg | Norway | Prime Minister | 16 October 2013 | 14 October 2021 | 7 years, 363 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Laimdota Straujuma | Latvia | Prime Minister | 22 January 2014 | 11 February 2016 | 2 years, 20 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Catherine Samba-Panza | Central African Republic | President | 23 January 2014 | 30 March 2016 | 2 years, 67 days | Head of state | Executive |
| Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca | Malta | President | 4 April 2014 | 4 April 2019 | 5 years | Head of state | |
| Ewa Kopacz | Poland | Prime Minister | 22 September 2014 | 16 November 2015 | 1 year, 55 days | Head of government | |
| Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović | Croatia | President | 19 February 2015 | 18 February 2020 | 4 years, 364 days | Head of state | |
| Ameenah Gurib-Fakim | Mauritius | President | 5 June 2015 | 23 March 2018 | 2 years, 291 days | Head of state | |
| Bidya Devi Bhandari | Nepal | President | 29 October 2015 | 13 March 2023 | 7 years, 135 days | Head of state | |
| Beata Szydło | Poland | Prime Minister | 16 November 2015 | 11 December 2017 | 2 years, 25 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Hilda Heine | Marshall Islands | President | 28 January 2016 | 14 January 2020 | 3 years, 351 days | Head of state and government | Executive |
| Hilda Heine | Marshall Islands | President | 3 January 2024 | Incumbent | 1 year, 75 days | Head of state and government | Executive |
| Aung San Suu Kyi | Myanmar | State Counsellor | 6 April 2016 | 1 February 2021 | 4 years, 301 days | De facto head of government | De facto Executive |
| Tsai Ing-wen | Taiwan | President | 20 May 2016 | 20 May 2024 | 8 years, 0 days | Head of state | Executive |
| Theresa May | United Kingdom | Prime Minister | 13 July 2016 | 24 July 2019 | 3 years, 11 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Kersti Kaljulaid | Estonia | President | 10 October 2016 | 11 October 2021 | 5 years, 1 day | Head of state | |
| Ana Brnabić | Serbia | Prime Minister | 29 June 2017 | 20 March 2024 | 6 years, 265 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Halimah Yacob | Singapore | President | 14 September 2017 | 14 September 2023 | 6 years, 0 days | Head of state | |
| Jacinda Ardern | New Zealand | Prime Minister | 26 October 2017 | 25 January 2023 | 5 years, 91 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Katrín Jakobsdóttir | Iceland | Prime Minister | 30 November 2017 | 9 April 2024 | 6 years, 131 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Viorica Dăncilă | Romania | Prime Minister | 29 January 2018 | 4 November 2019 | 1 year, 279 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Paula-Mae Weekes | Trinidad and Tobago | President | 19 March 2018 | 20 March 2023 | 5 years, 1 day | Head of state | |
| Mia Mottley | Barbados | Prime Minister | 25 May 2018 | Incumbent | 6 years, 298 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Sahle-Work Zewde | Ethiopia | President | 25 October 2018 | 7 October 2024 | 5 years, 348 days | Head of state | |
| Salome Zourabichvili | Georgia | President | 16 December 2018 | 29 December 2024 | 6 years, 13 days | Head of state | |
| Brigitte Bierlein | Austria | Chancellor | 3 June 2019 | 7 January 2020 | 218 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Maia Sandu | Moldova | Prime Minister | 8 June 2019 | 14 November 2019 | 159 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Maia Sandu | Moldova | President | 24 December 2020 | Incumbent | 4 years, 85 days | Head of state | |
| Zuzana Čaputová | Slovakia | President | 15 June 2019 | 15 June 2024 | 5 years, 0 days | Head of state | |
| Mette Frederiksen | Denmark | Prime Minister | 27 June 2019 | Incumbent | 5 years, 265 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Sophie Wilmès | Belgium | Prime Minister | 27 October 2019 | 1 October 2020 | 340 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Jeanine Áñez | Bolivia | President | 12 November 2019 | 8 November 2020 | 362 days | Head of state and government | Executive |
| Sanna Marin | Finland | Prime Minister | 10 December 2019 | 20 June 2023 | 3 years, 192 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Katerina Sakellaropoulou | Greece | President | 13 March 2020 | 13 March 2025 | 5 years, 0 days | Head of state | |
| Rose Christiane Raponda | Gabon | Prime Minister | 16 July 2020 | 9 January 2023 | 2 years, 177 days | Head of government | |
| Victoire Tomegah Dogbé | Togo | Prime Minister | 28 September 2020 | Incumbent | 4 years, 172 days | Head of government | |
| Ingrida Šimonytė | Lithuania | Prime Minister | 11 December 2020 | 12 December 2024 | 4 years, 1 day | Head of government | Executive |
| Kaja Kallas | Estonia | Prime Minister | 26 January 2021 | 23 July 2024 | 3 years, 179 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Samia Suluhu Hassan | Tanzania | President | 19 March 2021 | Incumbent | 4 years, 0 days | Head of state and government | Executive |
| Vjosa Osmani | Kosovo | President | 4 April 2021 | Incumbent | 3 years, 349 days | Head of state | |
| Fiamē Naomi Mataʻafa | Samoa | Prime Minister | 24 May 2021 | Incumbent | 3 years, 299 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Natalia Gavrilița | Moldova | Prime Minister | 6 August 2021 | 16 February 2023 | 1 year, 194 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Najla Bouden | Tunisia | Prime Minister | 11 October 2021 | 2 August 2023 | 1 year, 295 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Sandra Mason | Barbados | President | 30 November 2021 | Incumbent | 3 years, 109 days | Head of state | |
| Magdalena Andersson | Sweden | Prime Minister | 30 November 2021 | 18 October 2022 | 322 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Xiomara Castro | Honduras | President | 27 January 2022 | Incumbent | 3 years, 51 days | Head of state and government | Executive |
| Katalin Novák | Hungary | President | 10 May 2022 | 26 February 2024 | 1 year, 292 days | Head of state | |
| Élisabeth Borne | France | Prime Minister | 16 May 2022 | 9 January 2024 | 1 year, 238 days | Head of government | |
| Droupadi Murmu | India | President | 25 July 2022 | Incumbent | 2 years, 237 days | Head of state | |
| Liz Truss | United Kingdom | Prime Minister | 6 September 2022 | 25 October 2022 | 49 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Giorgia Meloni | Italy | Prime Minister | 22 October 2022 | Incumbent | 2 years, 148 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Dina Boluarte | Peru | President | 7 December 2022 | Incumbent | 2 years, 102 days | Head of state and government | Executive |
| Nataša Pirc Musar | Slovenia | President | 23 December 2022 | Incumbent | 2 years, 86 days | Head of state | |
| Borjana Krišto | Bosnia and Herzegovina | Chairwoman of the Council of Ministers | 25 January 2023 | Incumbent | 2 years, 53 days | Head of government | |
| Christine Kangaloo | Trinidad and Tobago | President | 20 March 2023 | Incumbent | 1 year, 364 days | Head of state | |
| Evika Siliņa | Latvia | Prime Minister | 15 September 2023 | Incumbent | 1 year, 185 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Sylvanie Burton | Dominica | President | 2 October 2023 | Incumbent | 1 year, 168 days | Head of state | |
| Myriam Spiteri Debono | Malta | President | 4 April 2024 | Incumbent | 349 days | Head of state | |
| Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova | North Macedonia | President | 12 May 2024 | Incumbent | 311 days | Head of state | |
| Judith Suminwa | Congo, Democratic Republic of the | Prime Minister | 12 June 2024 | Incumbent | 280 days | Head of government | |
| Halla Tómasdóttir | Iceland | President | 1 August 2024 | Incumbent | 230 days | Head of state | |
| Paetongtarn Shinawatra | Thailand | Prime Minister | 16 August 2024 | Incumbent | 215 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Claudia Sheinbaum | Mexico | President | 1 October 2024 | Incumbent | 169 days | Head of state and government | Executive |
| Kristrún Frostadóttir | Iceland | Prime Minister | 21 December 2024 | Incumbent | 88 days | Head of government | Executive |
| Ilza Amado Vaz | São Tomé and Príncipe | Prime Minister | 9 January 2025 | 12 January 2025 | 3 days | Head of government | |
| Raffaella Petrini | Vatican City | President of the Governorate | 1 March 2025 | Incumbent | 18 days | Head of government | |
| Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah | Namibia | President | 21 March 2025 | Elected | −2 days | Head of state and government | Executive |
| Brigitte Haas | Liechtenstein | Prime Minister | 10 April 2025 | Elected | −22 days | Head of government | |

### Elected or appointed acting female chief executives

This list includes women elected or appointed in an acting capacity, wherein they assumed a vacated office on a temporary basis.
| Name | Country | Office | Mandate start | Mandate end | Term length | Head of state or government |
| Sükhbaataryn Yanjmaa | Mongolia | Acting Chairman of the Presidium of the State Great Khural | 7 September 1953 | 7 July 1954 | 303 days | Head of state |
| Soong Ching-ling | China | Acting Co-Chairperson | 31 October 1968 | 24 April 1972 | 3 years, 176 days | Head of state |
| Soong Ching-ling | China | Acting Chairperson | 6 July 1976 | 5 March 1978 | 1 year, 242 days | Head of state |
| Carmen Pereira | Guinea-Bissau | Acting President | 14 May 1984 | 16 May 1984 | 2 days | Head of state |
| Sylvie Kinigi | Burundi | Acting President | 27 October 1993 | 5 February 1994 | 101 days | Head of state |
| Reneta Indzhova | Bulgaria | Acting Prime Minister | 17 October 1994 | 25 January 1995 | 100 days | Head of government |
| Irena Degutienė | Lithuania | Acting Prime Minister | 4 May 1999 | 18 May 1999 | 14 days | Head of government |
| Irena Degutienė | Lithuania | Acting Prime Minister | 27 October 1999 | 3 November 1999 | 7 days | Head of government |
| Nyam-Osoryn Tuyaa | Mongolia | Acting Prime Minister | 22 July 1999 | 30 July 1999 | 8 days | Head of government |
| Nino Burjanadze | Georgia | Acting President | 23 November 2003 | 25 January 2004 | 63 days | Head of state |
| Nino Burjanadze | Georgia | Acting President | 25 November 2007 | 20 January 2008 | 56 days | Head of state |
| Barbara Prammer | Austria | Co-Acting President | 6 July 2004 | 8 July 2004 | 2 days | Head of state |
| Radmila Šekerinska | Macedonia | Acting Prime Minister | 12 May 2004 | 12 June 2004 | 31 days | Head of government |
| Radmila Šekerinska | Macedonia | Acting Prime Minister | 3 November 2004 | 15 December 2004 | 42 days | Head of government |
| Dalia Itzik | Israel | Acting President | 25 January 2007 | 15 July 2007 | 171 days | Head of state |
| Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri | South Africa | Acting President | 25 September 2005 | 25 September 2005 | 14 hours | Head of state and government |
| Rose Francine Rogombé | Gabon | Acting President | 10 June 2009 | 16 October 2009 | 128 days | Head of state |
| Cécile Manorohanta | Madagascar | Acting Prime Minister | 18 December 2009 | 20 December 2009 | 2 days | Head of government |
| Adiato Djaló Nandigna | Guinea-Bissau | Acting Prime Minister | 10 February 2012 | 12 April 2012 | 62 days | Head of government |
| Monique Ohsan Bellepeau | Mauritius | Acting President | 31 March 2012 | 21 July 2012 | 112 days | Head of state |
| Monique Ohsan Bellepeau | Mauritius | Acting President | 29 May 2015 | 5 June 2015 | 7 days | Head of state |
| Slavica Đukić Dejanović | Serbia | Acting President | 5 April 2012 | 31 May 2012 | 56 days | Head of state |
| Julie Bishop | Australia | Acting Prime Minister | 20 December 2014 | 16 January 2015 | 27 days | Deputy Prime Minister |
| Natalia Gherman | Moldova | Acting Prime Minister | 22 June 2015 | 30 July 2015 | 38 days | Head of government |
| Vassiliki Thanou | Greece | Acting Prime Minister | 27 August 2015 | 21 September 2015 | 25 days | Head of government |
| Maya Parnas | Transnistria | Acting Prime Minister | 13 October 2015 | 30 November 2015 | 48 days | Head of government |
| Maya Parnas | Transnistria | Acting Prime Minister | 2 December 2015 | 23 December 2015 | 21 days | Head of government |
| Doris Bures | Austria | Co-Acting President of the National Council | 8 July 2016 | 26 January 2017 | 202 days | Head of state |
| Julie Bishop | Australia | Acting Prime Minister | 21 September 2018 | 23 October 2018 | 32 days | Deputy Prime Minister |
| Đặng Thị Ngọc Thịnh | Vietnam | Acting President | 21 September 2018 | 23 October 2018 | 32 days | Head of state |
| Vjosa Osmani | Kosovo | Acting President | 5 November 2020 | 22 March 2021 | 137 days | Head of state |
| Maya Tskitishvili | Georgia | Acting Prime Minister | 18 February 2021 | 22 February 2021 | 4 days | Head of government |
| Võ Thị Ánh Xuân | Vietnam | Acting President | 18 January 2023 | 2 March 2023 | 43 days | Head of state |
| Võ Thị Ánh Xuân | Vietnam | Acting President | 21 March 2024 | 22 May 2024 | 62 days | Head of state |
| Claudia Rodríguez de Guevara | El Salvador | Acting President | 1 December 2023 | 1 June 2024 | 183 days | Head of state |
| Isabelle Berro-Amadeï | Monaco | Acting Minister of State | 10 January 2025 | Incumbent | 68 days | Head of government |

## Female members of collective head-of-state bodies

| Name | Country | Office | Mandate start | Mandate end | Term length | Head of state or government |
| Alexandra Kollontai | Soviet Russia | Member of the Council of People's Commissars | 26 October 1917 | 23 February 1918 | 120 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Nadezhda Krupskaya | Soviet Union | Member of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet | 12 December 1937 | 27 February 1939 | 1 year, 77 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Klavdiya Nikolayeva | Soviet Union | Member of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet | 12 December 1937 | 10 February 1946 | 8 years, 60 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Anna Pankratova | Soviet Union | Member of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet | 14 March 1954 | 25 May 1957 | 3 years, 41 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Yekaterina Furtseva | Soviet Union | Member of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet | 12 March 1950 | 18 April 1962 | 12 years, 6 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Alicja Musiałowa-Afanasjew | Poland | Member of the Council of State | 20 November 1952 | 24 June 1965 | 12 years, 216 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Yadgar Nasriddinova | Soviet Union | Member of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet | 24 March 1959 | 25 September 1970 | 11 years, 154 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Luise Ermisch | East Germany | Member of the State Council | 12 September 1960 | 13 November 1963 | 3 years, 62 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Irmgard Neumann | East Germany | Member of the State Council | 12 September 1960 | 13 November 1963 | 3 years, 62 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Tursunoy Akhunova | Soviet Union | Member of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet | 18 April 1962 | 16 June 1974 | 12 years, 59 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Lieselott Herforth | East Germany | Member of the State Council | 13 November 1963 | 25 June 1981 | 17 years, 224 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Else Merke | East Germany | Member of the State Council | 13 November 1963 | 26 November 1971 | 8 years, 13 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Brunhilde Hanke | East Germany | Member of the State Council | 19 November 1964 | 5 April 1990 | 25 years, 137 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Anni Neumann | East Germany | Member of the State Council | 19 November 1964 | 26 November 1971 | 7 years, 7 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Eugenia Krassowska-Jodłowska | Poland | Member of the Council of State | 24 June 1965 | 28 March 1972 | 6 years, 278 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Zoya Pukhova | Soviet Union | Member of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet | 12 June 1966 | 25 May 1989 | 22 years, 347 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Maria Schneider | East Germany | Member of the State Council | 13 July 1967 | 26 November 1971 | 4 years, 136 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Margarete Müller | East Germany | Member of the State Council | 26 November 1971 | 11 January 1990 | 18 years, 46 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Ilse Thiele | East Germany | Member of the State Council | 26 November 1971 | 11 January 1990 | 18 years, 46 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Rosel Walther | East Germany | Member of the State Council | 26 November 1971 | 5 April 1990 | 18 years, 130 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Halina Koźniewska | Poland | Member of the Council of State | 28 March 1972 | 2 April 1980 | 8 years, 5 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Valentina Tereshkova | Soviet Union | Member of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet | June 1974 | March or April 1989 | c. 14 years | Member of the collective head of state |
| Rimma Gavrilova | Soviet Union | Member of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet | 16 June 1974 | 4 March 1984 | 9 years, 293 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Kamshat Donenbaeva | Soviet Union | Member of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet | 16 June 1974 | 25 May 1989 | 14 years, 343 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Eugenia Kempara | Poland | Member of the Council of State | 18 December 1976 | 6 November 1985 | 8 years, 323 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Yekaterina Mukhina | Soviet Union | Member of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet | 4 March 1979 | 4 March 1984 | 5 years, 0 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Violeta Chamorro | Nicaragua | Member of the Junta of National Reconstruction | 18 July 1979 | 19 April 1980 | 276 days | Member of the collective head of state and government |
| Krystyna Marszałek-Młyńczyk | Poland | Member of the Council of State | 2 April 1980 | 23 March 1983 | 2 years, 355 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Maria Lea Pedini-Angelini | San Marino | Captain Regent | 1 April 1981 | 1 October 1981 | 183 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Johanna Töpfer | East Germany | Member of the State Council | 25 June 1981 | 17 November 1989 | 8 years, 145 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Gloriana Ranocchini | San Marino | Captain Regent | 1 April 1984 | 1 October 1984 | 183 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Gloriana Ranocchini | San Marino | Captain Regent | 1 October 1989 | 1 April 1990 | 182 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Elisabeth Kopp | Switzerland | Member of the Swiss Federal Council | 21 October 1984 | 12 January 1989 | 4 years, 83 days | Member of the collective head of state and government |
| Elżbieta Gacek | Poland | Member of the Council of State | 6 November 1985 | 17 June 1988 | 2 years, 224 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Monika Werner | East Germany | Member of the State Council | 16 June 1986 | 5 April 1990 | 3 years, 293 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Eveline Klett | East Germany | Member of the State Council | 16 June 1986 | 5 April 1990 | 3 years, 293 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Edda Ceccoli | San Marino | Captain Regent | 1 October 1991 | 1 April 1992 | 183 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Biljana Plavšić | Bosnia and Herzegovina | Serb Member of the Presidency | 1 March 1992 | 9 April 1992 | 39 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Tatjana Ljujić-Mijatović | Bosnia and Herzegovina | Serb Member of the Presidency | 24 December 1992 | 5 October 1996 | 3 years, 286 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Ruth Dreifuss | Switzerland | Member of the Swiss Federal Council | 1 April 1993 | 31 December 2002 | 9 years, 296 days | Member of the collective head of state and government |
| Patrizia Busignani | San Marino | Captain Regent | 1 April 1993 | 1 October 1993 | 183 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Ruth Metzler | Switzerland | Member of the Swiss Federal Council | 1 January 1999 | 31 December 2003 | 4 years, 364 days | Member of the collective head of state and government |
| Rosa Zafferani | San Marino | Captain Regent | 1 April 1999 | 1 October 1999 | 183 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Rosa Zafferani | San Marino | Captain Regent | 1 April 2008 | 1 October 2008 | 183 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Maria Domenica Michelotti | San Marino | Captain Regent | 1 April 2000 | 1 October 2000 | 183 days | Member of the collective head of state and government |
| Micheline Calmy-Rey | Switzerland | Member of the Swiss Federal Council | 1 January 2003 | 31 December 2011 | 8 years, 364 days | Member of the collective head of state and government |
| Valeria Ciavatta | San Marino | Captain Regent | 1 October 2003 | 1 April 2004 | 183 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Valeria Ciavatta | San Marino | Captain Regent | 1 April 2014 | 1 October 2014 | 183 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Fausta Morganti | San Marino | Captain Regent | 1 April 2005 | 1 October 2005 | 183 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Doris Leuthard | Switzerland | Member of the Swiss Federal Council | 1 August 2006 | 31 December 2018 | 12 years, 152 days | Member of the collective head of state and government |
| Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf | Switzerland | Member of the Swiss Federal Council | 1 January 2008 | 31 December 2015 | 7 years, 364 days | Member of the collective head of state and government |
| Assunta Meloni | San Marino | Captain Regent | 1 October 2008 | 1 April 2009 | 182 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Simonetta Sommaruga | Switzerland | Member of the Swiss Federal Council | 1 November 2010 | 31 December 2022 | 12 years, 60 days | Member of the collective head of state and government |
| Maria Luisa Berti | San Marino | Captain Regent | 1 April 2011 | 1 October 2011 | 183 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Maria Luisa Berti | San Marino | Captain Regent | 1 October 2022 | 1 April 2023 | 182 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Denise Bronzetti | San Marino | Captain Regent | 1 October 2012 | 1 April 2013 | 182 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Denise Bronzetti | San Marino | Captain Regent | 1 April 2025 | Elect | −13 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Antonella Mularoni | San Marino | Captain Regent | 1 April 2013 | 1 October 2013 | 183 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Anna Maria Muccioli | San Marino | Captain Regent | 1 October 2013 | 1 April 2014 | 182 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Lorella Stefanelli | San Marino | Captain Regent | 1 October 2015 | 1 April 2016 | 183 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Mimma Zavoli | San Marino | Captain Regent | 1 April 2017 | 1 October 2017 | 183 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Vanessa D'Ambrosio | San Marino | Captain Regent | 1 April 2017 | 1 October 2017 | 183 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Karin Keller-Sutter | Switzerland | Member of the Swiss Federal Council | 1 January 2019 | Incumbent | 6 years, 77 days | Member of the collective head of state and government |
| Viola Amherd | Switzerland | Member of the Swiss Federal Council | 1 January 2019 | Incumbent | 6 years, 77 days | Member of the collective head of state and government |
| Aisha Musa el-Said | Sudan | Member of the Sovereignty Council | 21 August 2019 | 21 May 2021 | 1 year, 273 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Raja Nicola | Sudan | Member of the Sovereignty Council | 21 August 2019 | Incumbent | 5 years, 210 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Mariella Mularoni | San Marino | Captain Regent | 1 October 2019 | 1 April 2020 | 183 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Grazia Zafferani | San Marino | Captain Regent | 1 April 2020 | 1 October 2020 | 183 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Željka Cvijanović | Bosnia and Herzegovina | Serb Member of the Presidency | 16 November 2022 | Incumbent | 2 years, 123 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Élisabeth Baume-Schneider | Switzerland | Member of the Swiss Federal Council | 1 January 2023 | Incumbent | 2 years, 77 days | Member of the collective head of state and government |
| Adele Tonnini | San Marino | Captain Regent | 1 April 2023 | 1 October 2023 | 183 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Milena Gasperoni | San Marino | Captain Regent | 1 April 2024 | 1 October 2024 | 183 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Francesca Civerchia | San Marino | Captain Regent | 1 October 2024 | Incumbent | 169 days | Member of the collective head of state |
| Rosario Murillo | Nicaragua | Co-President | 18 February 2025 | Incumbent | 29 days | Member of the collective head of state |

## Female viceregal representatives

Below are women who have been appointed representatives of heads of state, such as female governors-general and French representatives of Andorra. As governors-general are appointed representatives of the monarch of the Commonwealth realms (currently Charles III) and the French Representatives of Andorra are appointed representatives of the French Co-Prince of Andorra (currently Emmanuel Macron), they act as heads of state and carry out on a regular basis the functions and duties associated with such a role in the Commonwealth realms (excluding the United Kingdom, which has no governor-general, as the monarch of the Commonwealth realms primarily resides there) and Andorra, respectively.
| Name | Country | Office | Mandate start | Mandate end | Term length |
| Elmira Minita Gordon | Belize | Governor-General | 21 September 1981 | 17 November 1993 | 12 years, 57 days |
| Jeanne Sauvé | Canada | Governor General | 14 May 1984 | 29 January 1990 | 5 years, 260 days |
| Nita Barrow | Barbados | Governor-General | 6 June 1990 | 19 December 1995 | 5 years, 196 days |
| Catherine Tizard | New Zealand | Governor-General | 13 December 1990 | 21 March 1996 | 5 years, 99 days |
| Pearlette Louisy | Saint Lucia | Governor-General | 17 September 1997 | 31 December 2017 | 20 years, 105 days |
| Adrienne Clarkson | Canada | Governor General | 7 October 1999 | 27 September 2005 | 5 years, 324 days |
| Silvia Cartwright | New Zealand | Governor-General | 4 April 2001 | 4 August 2006 | 5 years, 122 days |
| Ivy Dumont | The Bahamas | Governor-General | 11 November 2001 | 30 November 2005 | 4 years, 19 days |
| Michaëlle Jean | Canada | Governor General | 27 September 2005 | 1 October 2010 | 5 years, 4 days |
| Emmanuelle Mignon | Andorra | Representative of the French Co-Prince | 6 June 2007 | 24 September 2008 | 1 year, 110 days |
| Louise Lake-Tack | Antigua and Barbuda | Governor-General | 17 July 2007 | 13 August 2014 | 7 years, 27 days |
| Quentin Bryce | Australia | Governor-General | 5 September 2008 | 28 March 2014 | 5 years, 204 days |
| Sylvie Hubac | Andorra | Representative of the French Co-Prince | 15 May 2012 | 5 January 2015 | 2 years, 235 days |
| Cécile La Grenade | Grenada | Governor-General | 7 May 2013 | Incumbent | 11 years, 316 days |
| Marguerite Pindling | The Bahamas | Governor-General | 8 July 2014 | 28 June 2019 | 4 years, 355 days |
| Patsy Reddy | New Zealand | Governor-General | 28 September 2016 | 28 September 2021 | 5 years, 0 days |
| Julie Payette | Canada | Governor General | 2 October 2017 | 21 January 2021 | 3 years, 111 days |
| Sandra Mason | Barbados | Governor-General | 8 January 2018 | 30 November 2021 (became inaugural president) | 3 years, 326 days |
| Susan Dougan | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | Governor-General | 1 August 2019 | Incumbent | 5 years, 230 days |
| Froyla Tzalam | Belize | Governor-General | 27 May 2021 | Incumbent | 3 years, 296 days |
| Mary Simon | Canada | Governor General | 26 July 2021 | Incumbent | 3 years, 236 days |
| Cindy Kiro | New Zealand | Governor-General | 21 October 2021 | Incumbent | 3 years, 149 days |
| Marcella Liburd | Saint Kitts and Nevis | Governor-General | 1 February 2023 | Incumbent | 2 years, 46 days |
| Cynthia A. Pratt | The Bahamas | Governor-General | 1 September 2023 | Incumbent | 1 year, 199 days |
| Sam Mostyn | Australia | Governor-General | 1 July 2024 | Incumbent | 261 days |

### Acting female viceregal representatives

This list includes women appointed as viceregal representatives in an acting capacity, wherein they assumed a vacated office on a temporary basis.
| Name | Country | Office | Mandate start | Mandate end | Term length |
| Sian Elias | New Zealand | Administrator of the Government (Acting Governor-General) | 22 March 2001 | 4 April 2001 | 13 days |
| Sian Elias | New Zealand | Administrator of the Government (Acting Governor-General) | 4 August 2006 | 23 August 2006 | 19 days |
| Sian Elias | New Zealand | Administrator of the Government (Acting Governor-General) | 23 August 2011 | 31 August 2011 | 8 days |
| Sian Elias | New Zealand | Administrator of the Government (Acting Governor-General) | 31 August 2016 | 28 September 2016 | 28 days |
| Monica Dacon | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | Acting Governor-General | 3 June 2002 | 2 September 2002 | 91 days |
| Sandra Mason | Barbados | Acting Governor-General | 30 May 2012 | 1 June 2012 | 2 days |
| Teniku Talesi Honolulu | Tuvalu | Acting Governor-General | 22 August 2019 | 15 January 2021 | 1 year, 146 days |
| Helen Winkelmann | New Zealand | Administrator of the Government (Acting Governor-General) | 28 September 2021 | 21 October 2021 | 23 days |