RismadarVoice Reporters
September 26, 2026
Former United States President Barack Obama has said he believes governments around the world would perform better if women were allowed to lead them for two years.
Obama made the remarks during a conversation with historian Doris Kearns Goodwin at Salem State University in Massachusetts.
A video clip from the event was subsequently shared by C-SPAN, drawing renewed attention to the former president’s views on women in leadership.
Obama was discussing leadership and the importance of creating opportunities for younger generations when he recalled an idea he had considered while serving as president.
“Even when I was president, I sometimes fantasised about if you put women in charge of every government for like two years and then just kind of saw, all right, how are things going?” Obama said.
“I have a strong belief that things would — they wouldn’t be perfect. But they’d be better. I’m confident about that. I really do,” he added.
The hour-long Salem State Series event attracted about 3,600 people to the university’s O’Keefe Sports Complex, while hundreds of others watched from another venue on campus.
Obama has previously expressed similar views about women in political leadership.
Speaking at a leadership event in Singapore in 2019, the former president said he believed there would be improvements around the world if women temporarily ran every country.
During his latest appearance, Obama also addressed political divisions in the United States.
He argued that ordinary Americans were not necessarily as divided as political debate and media coverage might suggest.
“We’re not as divided as our politics or our media would indicate,” Obama said.
He maintained that people across the country continued to interact respectfully despite disagreements over politics and other issues.
