| Rank | Leader | Country | Previous Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Xi Jiangping | China | 1 |
| 2 | Kim Jong-un | North Korea | 6 |
| 3 | Moon Jae-in | South Korea | 7 |
| 4 | Ali Khamenei | Iran | 4 |
| 5 | Abiy Ahmed | Ethiopia | 5 |
| 6 | Paul Kagame | Rwanda | Nor Ranked |
| 7 | Vladimir Putin | Russia | 2 |
| 8 | Carlos Alvarado | Costa Rica | Not Ranked |
| 9 | King Abdullah | Jordan | Not Ranked |
| 10 | Muhammadu Buhari | Nigeria | Not Ranked |
There are some new names on the list as some familiar faces have had their share of trouble lately.
1. While Britain's Theresa May barely clings to power for now as Brexit plans become a horrific disaster, and Emmanuel Macron's principles and policies crumble in the face of protests, and there are increasing calls for Angela Merkel to leave power in Germany, and Saudi Arabia's MBS has turned himself into an international pariah, and it appears Donald Trump won't be President of the United States much longer, Xi Jianping maintains his firm grip on power even increasing China's influence in Latin America right under Trump's nose.
2. Despite being a brutal autocrat, Kim's international profile has transformed into that of a shrewd reformer... because this is the world we now live in.
3. Moon's popularity within South Korea has decreased somewhat lately due to a slight economic downturn, but his continued determination to thaw relations with his neighbor to the north fosters hope for a more peaceful world.
4. The Ayatollah remains relevant because of warmongers in Washington DC and Riyadh. Those same warmongers are on sinking ships in their own lands and are hoping to instigate Iran in order to save themselves. All they're doing is helping to prop up a stale regime by granting it viable scapegoats.
5. The Prime Minister of Ethiopia is attempting to institute political and economic reforms in transitioning the country into a liberal democracy. He's already survived an assassination attempt doing so.
6. Kagame is an autocrat who won nearly 100% of the vote in his third presidential election victory. But the courts recently dropped charges against a political opponent of Kagame's. He has turned Rwanda into a bastion of economic growth since the genocide and, despite the off-putting name, won a couple of "African of the Year" awards from different organizations.
7. Putin greeted MBS, fresh of his killing of Washington Post reporter Jamel Khashoggi, like they were old bros at the recent G20 summit. Putin can relate to murderers of journalists. Vlad exposed himself as a clown in the greeting. His country's economy is crumbling as he and his minions plunder his nation's wealth. But, he is the overlord of the United States, the wealthiest country in the world, so that should count for something.
8. Alvarado runs a democracy in Central America and is currently trying to push through tax legislation. Whether he succeeds or not, it's just nice to write something fairly normal about a president's agenda. As far as I know, Alvarado didn't pay off porn stars to keep quiet ahead of his election victory and didn't collaborate with the Russians to achieve said victory.
9. King Abdullah of Jordan recently won the Templeton Prize for his efforts to foster religious harmony. UN Secretary General Andres Guterres called Abdullah a messenger for peace and an outstanding statesmen. President Trump's own lawyers have called Trump a crook and "a fucking liar." So score one for Abdullah.
10. For the first time since World War II, a U.S. president has failed to crack the top ten on this list (Ok, so the list only started this year, but if I had been doing this list since World War II, then my statement would be true. Even during Watergate, Nixon probably would've been no lower than 5.)
Nigeria's Muhammadu Buhari makes the list for the first time because he's not dead. There were rumors that Buhari had died and was replaced by a lookalike, but it turns out he just needed to travel to Europe for medical treatment. He hasn't lived up to expectations battling corruption or Boko Haram, but he's alive and, well, that's something.
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