President

Institutional context

Iceland is a parliamentary republic; the President is a directly elected, largely ceremonial head of state. The office was created with Icelandic independence from Denmark in 1944. From 1944 to 1980, every holder was male.

Career path

Finnbogadóttir studied French and literature at the universities of Grenoble and Sorbonne in France and at the University of Iceland and the University of Copenhagen. Before standing for the presidency she directed the Reykjavík City Theatre from 1972 to 1980 and taught French language and literature.

Appointment

She won a closely contested four-candidate election in June 1980 with roughly a third of the vote, taking office on 1 August 1980. She was the world's first directly elected female head of state. She was returned to office unopposed in 1984, and contested elections in 1988; she did not stand for re-election in 1996.

Tenure

Sixteen years in office. Her presidency was largely ceremonial in keeping with the role's constitutional design, with public emphasis on cultural diplomacy and the promotion of the Icelandic language abroad.

Cluster context

Finnbogadóttir is the second earliest first-woman appointment in the dataset and, like Thatcher, an isolated outlier predating the principal cluster by decades. Her election by direct popular vote distinguishes her from Thatcher, who reached office through parliamentary election within a party.

Sources

• Office of the President of Iceland — Former Presidents
• University of Iceland archives — Vigdís Finnbogadóttir