10 people who were the 'Times Person of the Year' in the last 10 years

President-elect Donald Trump has been named Time magazine's Person of the Year for 2024. This title honors his historic return to the White House as only the second U.S. president to lose re-election and reclaim the presidency four years later. Trump was elected for the second time as the ‘Person of the Year’, beating finalists including Vice President Kamala Harris, Trump's billionaire ally Elon Musk, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Catherine, Princess of Wales, and Kate Middleton. Time’s ‘Person of the Year’ is an annual distinction awarded by Time magazine to the individual, group, idea, or object that has had the most significant influence on world events, for better or worse. The tradition began in 1927 as "Man of the Year," with aviator Charles Lindbergh as the inaugural honoree. Since then the title has evolved to reflect the diversity and complexity of global impact, becoming "Person of the Year" in 1999. Let us look at the winners of this title from 2015-2024
Credit: X/@NickAdamsinUSA

Times explains their choice, saying, “Since he began running for president in 2015, perhaps no single individual has played a larger role in changing the course of politics and history than Trump.” This is the second time Trump has been given this honorary title.
Credit: X/@realdonaldtrump

You can hate her or love her, but you can’t ignore the effect she has on millions in this world. Even before 2023, she was among the biggest pop stars, but with the Eras tour her career graph has reached a new height. The overwhelming demand for tickets caused Ticketmaster's website to crash, leading the US Senate to launch an investigation into the company's business practices.

Credit: X/@taylorswift13

On February 24, 2022, when Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine, many believed it was only a matter of time before Ukraine would succumb to Russia's military power. While political commentators will list down many reasons including -western support, or even Russia’s lack of strategizing, but standing tall and proud with his soldiers, Ukrainian President Zelensky showed the world that they will not bow in front of ‘invaders’.

Credit: X/@ZelenskyyUa

Elon Musk was named Time magazine's Person of the Year for 2021. The CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, who was the wealthiest person in the world at the time, remained a prominent figure in the news as he and his companies shaped the future of automobiles and space exploration. Time Editor-In-Chief Edward Felsenthal said in an interview that "He is reshaping life on Earth and possibly life off Earth as well."
Credit: X/@elonmusk

US President-elect Joe Biden and his running mate Kamala Harris were chosen as Time magazine's Person of the Year in 2020. Time's editor-in-chief, Edward Felsenthal, reasoned their selection by stating, "For changing the American story, for showing that the forces of empathy are greater than the furies of division, for sharing a vision of healing in a grieving world, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris are TIME's 2020 Person of the Year."
Credit: X/@JoeBiden

At 16 years old, Greta Thunberg was the youngest person to ever receive the award. As an environmental activist, Great became conscious of climate change at around the age of seven or eight. Her global movement began when she skipped school in 2018 and spent days outside the Swedish parliament holding a sign that said, “Skolstrejk för klimatet: School Strike for Climate.” Then within 16 months she addressed heads of State at the UN, met world leaders and even the Pope, and talked about climate change.

Credit: X/@GretaThunberg

The 2018 Time Person of the Year was a powerful acknowledgment of those who pursued truth in the face of authoritarian suppression. This honor recognized four journalists—Jamal Khashoggi, Maria Ressa, Wa Lone, and Kyaw Soe Oo—and one news organization, the Capital Gazette of Annapolis, Md., for their courage and sacrifice. In 2018 alone, as reported by Time, at least 52 journalists were murdered.

The phrase "me too" was first coined by activist Tarana Burke in 2006, but it gained widespread recognition in 2017 when actress Alyssa Milano tweeted "me too," urging others who had experienced sexual harassment or assault to share their stories. Within 24 hours, the movement garnered 12 million responses on social media. This created a movement that took the world by storm with many women breaking their silence and sharing their experience. The 2017 Person of the Year title was for a wide range of women who faced the world and urged others to do the same.

'Surprise' is such an underwhelming word to describe what the world felt when Donald Trump defeated the Democratic representative Hilary Clinton. And as his tenure began everyone knew that the rules of politics were being changed, whether one liked it or not.
Credit: X/@realdonaldtrump

In 2015, former German Chancellor Angela Merkel earned the title of TIME Person of the Year. The magazine recognized her decisive leadership during some of Europe’s most challenging moments,

credit: X/@wahlstedt007