TV’s Best Female Presidents From The Simpsons, Scandal, Veep and More — Who Gets Your Vote?
Halloween may be behind us, but that doesn’t mean spooky season is over just yet. We still have Election Day to get through!
Regardless of how the results shake out, there’s no denying the significance of this election, with Vice President Kamala Harris taking on former President Donald Trump in the hopes of becoming the first woman to command the Oval Office.
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And while the concept of a female president remains farfetched to some American voters, it’s been fairly commonplace on TV for years. From classic series like The Simpsons and 24 to newer shows like For All Mankind and Y: The Last Man, TVLine is looking back at our 10 favorite women to rule the White House.
Among the remarkable individuals on our eclectic list is a cartoon character, an alien from outer space and the first openly gay president, because these women contain multitudes. (Fun fact: You also apparently have a better chance of getting elected if your name is Elizabeth. Just saying.)
Read on for our list of TV’s top 10 female presidents — arranged alphabetically by their characters’ last names — then drop a comment with your own favorites below. Is there anyone you would add to our list?
Jennifer Brown (Diane Lane), Y: The Last Man
To be fair, this Congressman played by Diane Lane made it to the White House by default on FX’s sci-fi series after a virus killed off nearly every man on Earth, leaving her as the highest ranking U.S. government official. But she stepped right up to fill the role admirably, even as chaos swirled all around her — including the fact that her son Yorick was the last male human being still alive.
Mellie Grant (Bellamy Young), Scandal
We always rooted for Mellie Grant — even during her “Smelly Mellie” phase — so we weren’t surprised when her relentless determination eventually took her from FLOTUS to POTUS in the show’s final season. We also weren’t surprised that her road to the Oval Office was paved in extortion, murder and, well, Scandal. And we wouldn’t have had it any other way. (Sorry, Luna!)
Elizabeth Keane (Elizabeth Marvel), Homeland
After her presidential bid fell short on Netflix’s House of Cards, TV veteran Elizabeth Marvel finally made it to the Oval Office on the Showtime thriller as crafty politico Elizabeth Keane. We thought she and Claire Danes’ Carrie might make a formidable duo, but then Keane threw Saul in jail, blaming him for an attempt on her life while launching a campaign of paranoid revenge. So we didn’t shed a tear when she ultimately resigned at the end of Season 7.
Olivia Marsdin (Lynda Carter), Supergirl
Lassoing TV’s original Wonder Woman to play POTUS was a stroke of casting genius on Supergirl‘s part. Genius is also how we’d describe Lynda Carter’s performance as President Marsdin, a character she infused with the kind of warmth and hope you could feel through your screen. It was devastating to see her resign after being outed as an extraterrestrial, but she remained a beacon of light, even in her darkest hour.
Elizabeth McCord (Tea Leoni), Madam Secretary
Don’t let the show’s title fool you — Tea Leoni’s character indeed gained control of the Oval Office in Madam Secretary’s sixth and final season. During her stint as leader of the free world, President McCord faced complicated domestic and international crises, leaving behind a legacy of strength and service that included reviving the Equal Rights Amendment. (McCord’s presidency earns extra points for giving us Tim Daly as the First Gentleman.)
Selina Meyer (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), Veep
The gloriously foul-mouthed candidate played by Emmy winner Julia Louis-Dreyfus was used to playing second fiddle to the President as the HBO comedy’s titular VP. But Selina got her moment to shine in Season 3 when the President abruptly resigned, handing her the keys to the Oval Office. She fumbled those keys, of course, in grandly comic fashion, losing an agonizingly drawn-out election and then selling her soul to hang onto the slightest shred of political relevance. She still made it, though, folks!
Lisa Simpson (Yeardley Smith), The Simpsons
We’d sprint to the ballot box to cast our vote for the levelheaded brainiac of the Simpson clan, and we got our wish when a grown-up Lisa took the White House in a 2000 flash-forward episode. The odds were against her: She “inherited quite a budget crunch from President Trump” (hahaha… oof), and she also had her slacker brother Bart messing things up for her. But we’d still choo-choo-choose her to lead our country into the (animated) future.
Allison Taylor (Cherry Jones), 24
President Taylor’s time in office was marred with personal tragedies, from the death of her son to the arrest of her daughter, but there’s no denying that this woman was a force of nature. Unwilling to negotiate with terrorists, Cherry Jones’ character remained an example of strength in the face of great opposition, cementing herself as one for the history books.
Kelly Wade (Sheryl Lee Ralph), Motherland: Fort Salem
The term “witch hunt” gets thrown around a lot in politics these days, but only one president on this list had to deal with actual witches being hunted, and her support of those endangered Americans led to her assassination attempt. President Wade did briefly go into hiding after being presumed dead, but she returned stronger than ever with a message for the man responsible for her attack: “You don’t think it’s me?” she asked before delivering a powerful slap. “Check my fingerprints.”
Ellen Wilson (Jodi Balfour), For All Mankind
The former astronaut served as president in the space drama’s alt history from 1993-2001, but Ellen Wilson made her mark as more than just the show’s first female POTUS. She also eventually became the first openly gay president, with her partner Pam holding the bible as Ellen was sworn in for her second term.
Now that you’ve seen our picks, vote for your favorite below:
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