Let me start off by briefly explaining why I am writing this article in the first place.

It seems that since we elected Barack Obama as our first non-white president in 2008, people just want to keep the historical elections going. Although it would mean a lot to vote in our first female president, we should not vote for a woman simply because she is a woman. We should treat her as equally as we would any other candidate. That being said, there are so many potential female presidential candidates, and there will be plenty more in the future thanks to the breaking of the stereotype that politics is a man's job. Maybe the best candidate over all in the 2016 election is not Hillary Clinton. Would that mean that our historical moment will never happen? Of course not! A woman will be elected president sometime in the 21st century; that is almost guaranteed. However, if we are going to make history, let’s elect a female president that will give women a good name! Here is a list of five women I believe would make good first female presidents. This is my opinion based on what I have observed and researched. I urge you to think of your own possible candidates. Think out of the "Hillary 2016"-box, and think about which woman you would really want to represent you.

So, here we go..

5.) Meg Whitman

Courtesy of HP.com

The CEO of Hewlett-Packard (HP) has made herself a common name in both economics and politics. Meg is the former CEO of eBay, and the turnaround she made there was outstanding. During her term as CEO of eBay from 1998 to 2008, company revenues grew from $4 million per year to $8 billion. Although her attempt at becoming governor of California failed in 2010, she has always been involved in politics, and endorsed Mitt Romney’s campaign in 2012. She has important relations with the people of America, along with international businesses. Her employees have said that her greatest quality is inspiring a strong culture of team building, which is desperately needed in Washington, D.C. However, before she could ever run for president, she will have to become more directly involved with politics. They may want to use her to improve a certain sector of some sort. Although it will take time, Meg Whitman’s potential is clear.

4.) Hillary Clinton

Courtesy of Urbangracemagazine.com

Arguably the most well-known female politician in America, Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign has been in the works for years. She is the reality of Political Animal’s plot line (if you have never watched that mini-series, DO IT). People may be surprised that she is only four on my list, others may be surprised that she is on the list at all. Hillary is on this list because she has an international and domestic presence. She knows how the game of politics works and has experience with international policies. Although people may want some huge change, that is not necessarily the best idea for America with its current political and economic situation. Hillary will be able to build on the base that Obama left, instead of a Republican like Jeb Bush being pressured to erase every Obama fingerprint he can. The country needs to focus on moving forward in some way, not erasing what was done and restarting. Experience and a resume are both necessities to run for president. The problem with Hillary is that her resume exists, but is by no means outstanding. In her time as Secretary of State, Hillary had the opportunity to really make a difference in the US’s presence in the Middle East, but instead acted with extreme caution; possibly to avoid hurting her 2016 campaign. Being Secretary of State has added nothing to Hillary’s resume except experience. Vise-versa, the only thing that may hurt her from her time as Secretary of State is the Benghazi incident. What may also hurt Clinton's campaign is her image of being a typical politician who lies and says whatever she can to get the votes. She has been very wishy-washy on certain topics, such as sanctuary cities and the government’s handling of the Middle East. She is hard to trust. The government needs to be more transparent, but can Hillary Clinton really deliver that when she is one of the least transparent people in politics? I’m eager to see her in a live debate with the other candidates, and to see which of her opinions she sticks to.

3.) Mary Schapiro

Courtesy of wikipedia.com

The former chair of the US’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is a woman who has had a hand in the government’s financial policies since 1988. Reagan, George H. W. Bush, Clinton, George W. Bush, and Obama all appointed her to high government positions to advise and take part in financial matters. President Obama appointed her as the first female permanent chair of the SEC in 2009. The Senate unanimously voted her in as well, because they knew that she had the experience and conviction to get things done. Schapiro got right to work and increased regulations on banks in order to prevent another bubble formation like the one in 2008. She was successful in improving the SEC’s enforcement program by creating new structures, procedures, and programs to better address the modern financial markets. In April 2013, Schapiro joined Promontory Financial Group, where she is the Advisory Board Vice Chair. She knows politics and she knows how to work economics, and stand up to the large banks that have been hand-in-hand with Washington for the past decade. She is number three because of a few qualities that she lacks: she has never dealt with being elected by the average American, she is not yet a well known name, which is key in order to rally votes, and she has not been involved much with foreign policy outside of economics. Although it seems as if she has only been involved in economics, she has been behind the scenes with five presidents, and has been involved in creating and amending numerous policies. She has all of the qualities that a politician and business woman needs in order to be successful in the big leagues. “Put me in, coach!”

2.) Elizabeth Warren

Courtesy of twitter.com

Current Massachusetts senator, Elizabeth Warren, is a Democrat who has called out both Republicans and fellow Democrats (including Hillary Clinton) for being owned by Big Money interests. She has criticized Obama for not allowing the people to see the deal he crafted for global trade, and stands firmly against Washington and Wall Street having such a close relationship. She is not afraid to criticize where she believes there is an issue. Elizabeth Warren is a part of the following senate committees: Banking, Economic Policy, Health, Education, Labor, Energy and Natural resources, and a special committee on Aging. What I think makes Ms. Warren a great potential first female president is that she is a politician without the typical politician attributes, such as shying away from certain topics and afraid to speak out against her party. She openly blames both parties for the constantly-widening income gap and refuses to say that nothing can be done to fix it. She has used her position in the Senate to ensure that Washington and Wall Street don't grow any closer than they already have. For example, when Larry Summers, a top economic aide to presidents Clinton and Bush and a former consultant to Citibank, came close to getting his dream job as Chairman of the Federal Reserve, Warren rallied a Democratic group to end his chances because this would closely align interests of the FED and big banks. Warren and Obama have similar ideas in that both want to increase minimum wage and increase overtime pay. However, Elizabeth Warren does not approve of Obama's lack of transparency on his free-trade agreements and the slow way he handles situations that need immediate attention. Elizabeth is currently a supporter of Bernie Sanders, Hillary Clinton's biggest rival. Warren is popular throughout the country and many older politicians believe she could have been Hillary Clinton's perfect rival in the 2016 election. Elizabeth Warren was asked multiple times to run, but each time she refused, knowing that right now she is more helpful in the Senate. I look forward to the day when Warren realizes that she can do more good from the Oval Office than from Capitol Hill.

1.) Condoleeza Rice

Courtesy of fordhallforum.org

The best first female president that America could have is Condoleeza Rice. I firmly believe that with her experience and popularity, both domestically and internationally, she could bring America back into a favored light. Rice is very open about her opinion on the direction in which the government should go . She told The Washington Post that no matter who the president is, Democrat or Republican, they need to work on getting things done through bipartisan relations, not through executive action. She continues to explain that executive action only deepens the rift between parties and government branches. Condoleeza has always expressed the importance of teamwork, be it during her time as Secretary of State (2005-2009), her time as a Stanford Professor, or when she commented on how current events should be handled. When the war in Iraq consumed George W. Bush’s presidency, Dick Cheney and many others were urging Bush to put more troops on the ground and confront Iran as well. Rice, knowing that confronting Iran would not lead to any solutions, advised Bush on a more moderate mindset that did not involve a spur of direct confrontation. In 2012, Condoleeza Rice was the most liked Republican in the country. She has the popularity to draw in votes. The fact that she is both a woman and an African American, AND has an inspiring biography will help many voters relate to her. She has a name that is internationally known and credentials that can’t be beat. Rice was the first African-American woman to serve as provost of Stanford University, as a National Security Advisor, and as Secretary of State. Condoleeza Rice has stated that she will stay at Stanford as a professor, but that she does favor her long-time friend, Jeb Bush, in the upcoming election. Although she denies moving back into the political world, Condoleeza Rice could be one of the best presidents America could have.