And the winner of the poll is…

As we closed the World Bank president poll this week, over 15,000 people had voted for their favourite developing country candidate.

The result? Well, our friends in Indonesia came out in force, resulting in a landslide victory for Sri Mulyani Indrawati, an Indonesian economist and one of the current Managing Directors of the World Bank Group, who beat her opponents with a staggering 87% of the votes.

The runner up, Kemal Derviş, former World Bank staff and Turkish Prime Minister, currently the Vice President and Director of the Global Economy and Development program at the Brookings Institution, started off in a favourable position but was unable to keep up and was left with only 8% of the votes.

Michelle Bachelet, the first female president of Chile and currently head of UN Women, came third with 2% of the votes.

The full list is:

  • Sri Mulyani Indrawati (87%, 13,070 Votes)
  • Kemal Derviş (8%, 1,140 Votes)
  • Michelle Bachelet (2%, 260 Votes)
  • Other (1%, 155 Votes)
  • Luiz Inácio “Lula” da Silva (1%, 118 Votes)
  • Jairam Ramesh (1%, 117 Votes)
  • Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala (1%, 91 Votes)
  • Marina Silva(0%, 46 Votes)
  • Trevor Manuel (0%, 38 Votes)
  • Luisa Diogo (0%, 19 Votes)

So, will the poll make a mark on the official selection process? Well, it has certainly caused some stir (and not just in Indonesia). Not only did Paddy Power, the bookmaker, cover all our candidates, others have also taken a keen interest in our suggestions. In India, our nominee Jairam Ramesh made headlines as a potential candidate and Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala was most recently promoted as a deserving candidate by the Centre for Global Development.

Other developing country names that didn’t make our list have also started bubbling. In Bangladesh, the president’s suggestion that Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus should be nominated caused a media frenzy in the region. Other new names suggested through our site or others include Andrew Sheng, advisor for the China Banking Regulatory Commission , Nandan Nilekani, the Indian co-founder of INFOSYS, Fernando Henrique Cardoso, former president of Brazil, Mahmoud Mohieldin, Managing Director of the World Bank, Ernesto Zedillo, former president of Mexico, Montek Singh Ahluwalia, the head of India’s Planning Commission, to name a few.

The lack of Chinese candidates was also picked up, suggesting Li Ruogu, Sha Zukang, Yi Gang and Shengman Zhang, as potentials.

Count down is on. In the words of Paul O’Brien of Oxfam America, at the end of the day the post should go to “the best woman or man for the job.” But without an open and merit based selection process, how are we to know?

 

11 thoughts on “And the winner of the poll is…

  1. Dear World Bank Committee,
    Sri Mulyani as the Indonesian finance minister has successfully guided economic policy, after navigating through the tricky course during the crisis, and bringing the Indonesian economy back to recovery. And Her stint as an executive director of the IMF has given her an international credibility. Sri Mulyani is one of the rare people who possess extraordinary credentials that match with what the World Bank needs in this tumultuous time. I believe She can handle the President of the world Bank Position.

  2. Who will be the next World Bank’s President?
    Whoever he or she, hope the candidate will be the right person

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  5. It is time for more attention to the Arab spring ailling economies and the poor countries.. Mahmoud Mohieldin would be an ideal candidate for this .. he knows the inside of the Arab world and is also engaged in the war against poverty .. Hurraaaayyy Mahmoud

  6. Given the titanic shifts that have occurred in the Arab World last year and which continue to shake the foundations of the Global order, I am amazed that no Arab is on this list.

    Why not Mahmoud Mohieldin as a possible future president of the Bank? or is it because its now the fashion in western circles to try to throw the baby with the bath water? … and yes, its the same western voices who supported the old despots of the Arab world who are now pretending to shun everyone who worked with them in the past, including those who were and still are the best.

  7. we’re wont to mrs sri mulyani to candidate for winner in polling, of world president banking.
    Beleave me her is the best from indonesian ,she make the world smile not cry(by Bung: Ardiansyah from indonesian paradise)

  8. CONGRATULATIONS TO SRI MULYANI INDRAWATI.
    IN FACT, IN REALITY, SHE REALLY IS THE BEST
    SHE WILL BE A GREAT WORLD BANK PRESIDENT

  9. Our former finance minister has been well-known in our country with her breakthrough!
    She has stir our country to be a south east Asia’s leader.
    GLAD TO BE INDONESIAN.
    HORAS!

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