# What major Western nation is next in line for a first minority prez/PM? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [November 6, 2008, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-major-western-nation-is-next-in-line-for-a-first-minority-prez-pm/471412 "2008-11-06T04:34:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2008, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-major-western-nation-is-next-in-line-for-a-first-minority-prez-pm/471412/21 "2008-11-06T20:48:58Z")
> [@Laudenum](#): > > Someone told me that Spain and Portugal have had Hispanic leaders. 😃 True enough, but have they had any _white_ ones? ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Scud](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f08c70/32.png) [@Tom\_Scud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Scud)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2008, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-major-western-nation-is-next-in-line-for-a-first-minority-prez-pm/471412/22 "2008-11-06T20:53:17Z")
> [@suranyi](#): > > This is what I think shows one thing about America that is definitely still great, despite all its flaws. I don’t think there is another western democracy that is anywhere near electing a member of a visible minority to its top elected position. > > Ed Benjamin Disraeli was a hundred thirty frigging years ago, dammit. And he sure as hell would have been a “visible minority” at the time. ---
**Author:** ![Crocodiles\_And\_Boulevards](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ee7513/32.png) [@Crocodiles\_And\_Boulevards](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crocodiles_And_Boulevards)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2008, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-major-western-nation-is-next-in-line-for-a-first-minority-prez-pm/471412/23 "2008-11-06T21:00:58Z")
> [@Tom\_Scud](#): > > Benjamin Disraeli was a hundred thirty frigging years ago, dammit. > > And he sure as hell would have been a “visible minority” at the time. I’m going to go ahead and agree with you on this. Jews definitely were a visible minority in that period, though I think it was an easier social obstacle to overcome for their ethnicity than, for example, someone of an ethnicity with a different color skin. Also, didn’t D’Israeli convert to Anglicanism as a young boy? I’m sure that had much to do with negating whatever political baggage he carried by being an ethnic Jew. ---
**Author:** ![cmkeller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmkeller/32/118_2.png) [@cmkeller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmkeller)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2008, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-major-western-nation-is-next-in-line-for-a-first-minority-prez-pm/471412/24 "2008-11-06T21:02:50Z")
Laudenum: > [@](#): > > Someone told me that Spain and Portugal have had Hispanic leaders. Spaniards are not “Hispanic.” In fact, I’ve been led to understand that people of Spanish descent from the original Spanish land-grantees of the American Southwest HATE being categorized together with Hispanics (i.e., Mexican, Cuban, Dominican and Puerto Rican descended Americans). ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Scud](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f08c70/32.png) [@Tom\_Scud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Scud)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2008, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-major-western-nation-is-next-in-line-for-a-first-minority-prez-pm/471412/25 "2008-11-06T21:09:09Z")
> [@Crocodiles\_And\_Boulevards](#): > > Also, didn’t D’Israeli convert to Anglicanism as a young boy? I’m sure that had much to do with negating whatever political baggage he carried by being an ethnic Jew. According to the wikipedia article, he was baptised at the age of 13 because the family was feuding with the local synagogue. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2008, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-major-western-nation-is-next-in-line-for-a-first-minority-prez-pm/471412/26 "2008-11-06T21:20:17Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > A few of my wife’s co-workers were babbling amount how it amazed them that “Such a racist country” like the USA would elect Obama. She asked them, “How many minorities have ever even run a party in Canada?” They couldn’t think of any, since of course there never have been any (at the federal level.) Well, we _do_ have an official representative of the Head of State who is Black, an immigrant, _and_ female. 😃 [Yes, I know the post is mainly ceremonial ;)] ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2008, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-major-western-nation-is-next-in-line-for-a-first-minority-prez-pm/471412/27 "2008-11-06T21:26:36Z")
And Australia has already had a Prime Minister who might count as “Hispanic”: [Chris Watson](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_Watson) was born in Chile in 1867, and became Prime Minister of Australia in 1904. (He’s better known for being the first Labour Party prime minister in the world). ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2008, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-major-western-nation-is-next-in-line-for-a-first-minority-prez-pm/471412/28 "2008-11-06T22:57:07Z")
Both Brown and Blair are Scottish. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2008, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-major-western-nation-is-next-in-line-for-a-first-minority-prez-pm/471412/29 "2008-11-06T23:35:27Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > Both Brown and Blair are Scottish. 🙂 Blair was also Catholic, right? Less of a big deal than it might once have been, but still… ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2008, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-major-western-nation-is-next-in-line-for-a-first-minority-prez-pm/471412/30 "2008-11-06T23:48:05Z")
> [@Tom\_Tildrum](#): > > Blair was also Catholic, right? Less of a big deal than it might once have been, but still… _Cherie_ Blair is a life-long Catholic, Tony Blair didn’t convert to Catholicism until _after_ he left office. Has the UK actually had a non-Anglican PM? Doesn’t the Prime Minster advise the Queen on appointments of Church of England bishops? ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2008, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-major-western-nation-is-next-in-line-for-a-first-minority-prez-pm/471412/31 "2008-11-07T00:03:23Z")
> [@Tom\_Scud](#): > > Benjamin Disraeli was a hundred thirty frigging years ago, dammit. > > And he sure as hell would have been a “visible minority” at the time. You’re right about Disraeli, though I didn’t count him since he had converted when very young. Ed ---
**Author:** ![The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9fc348/32.png) [@The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Flying_Dutchman)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2008, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-major-western-nation-is-next-in-line-for-a-first-minority-prez-pm/471412/32 "2008-11-07T01:46:58Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > A few of my wife’s co-workers were babbling amount how it amazed them that “Such a racist country” like the USA would elect Obama. She asked them, “How many minorities have ever even run a party in Canada?” They couldn’t think of any, since of course there never have been any (at the federal level.) The prime minister in this country more often than not has been elected from an ethnic minority that now comprises 21% of the population. We’ve done that since Laurier. Rarely today do we talk about French Canadians as a minority, but they fit the definition of a minority that most of the rest of the world would understand. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2008, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-major-western-nation-is-next-in-line-for-a-first-minority-prez-pm/471412/33 "2008-11-07T02:25:50Z")
The religious divide between Protestants and Roman Catholics also doesn’t matter in Canada. Of our 22 Prime Ministers, 9 have been Roman Catholic, and 13 have been Protestant: [Religious Affiliation of Canadian Prime Ministers](http://www.adherents.com/gov/adh_pm.html). And, it’s not just the French-Canadians who are Roman Catholic - there was a string of Roman Catholic Prime Ministers from 1968 to 1993, both Anglos and Francos (Trudeau, Clark, Turner and Mulroney). The idea that a Prime Minister has to wait to leave office before converting to Roman Catholicism just seems bizarre to me. (Note that this list doesn’t include Stephen Harper, who is Protestant, so I’ve added him to my numbers. Also, I thought that Sir John A. was Presbyterian, not Anglican, but I’m open to correction.) ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2008, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-major-western-nation-is-next-in-line-for-a-first-minority-prez-pm/471412/34 "2008-11-07T14:13:22Z")
> [@alphaboi867](#): > > _Cherie_ Blair is a life-long Catholic, Tony Blair didn’t convert to Catholicism until _after_ he left office. Has the UK actually had a non-Anglican PM? Doesn’t the Prime Minster advise the Queen on appointments of Church of England bishops? Checking in Wikipedia: Lloyd George was Disciples of Christ Clem Atlee was atheist or agnostic Harold Wilson was Congregationalist James Callaghan was Baptist (You’re going to get the nonconformists more on the Labour side, of course). According to the Wikipedia article [Appointment of Church of England bishops](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appointment_of_Church_of_England_bishops), the Prime Minister does have a role in the process, but most of the process is carried out by a church committee. ---
**Author:** ![Estilicon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/848f3c/32.png) [@Estilicon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Estilicon)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2008, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-major-western-nation-is-next-in-line-for-a-first-minority-prez-pm/471412/35 "2008-11-07T15:22:17Z")
The presente president of Argentina is a Woman, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchener, she is the second woman to become president of argentina but the first that was elected: Isabel Peron, who was president in the 70´s, was her husband vicepresident. Also the principal opposition leader, and many times candidate for the presidency, Elisa Carrio is a woman as many governors. I know women are not considered a minority but other dopers are mentioning them. Also, former President Menem (1989-1999) parents were syrian. Two of his ministers were jewish (that shows that in the New World were are less crazy than in the old one). I was born in the province of Tucuman which is a pretty conservative society where most of the population - as in Argentina - is catholic. Nonetheless there is a strong arab an jewish comunity. The governor of the province, JosÊ Alperovich, is jewish. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2008, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-major-western-nation-is-next-in-line-for-a-first-minority-prez-pm/471412/36 "2008-11-07T16:04:44Z")
Well! Hola **Estilicon**! Nice to see you again! Even though indians are the majority in Bolivia it was only recently that Evo Morales became president, you can guess who the elite was from colonial times. ---
**Author:** ![Hypnagogic\_Jerk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hypnagogic_jerk/32/4252_2.png) [@Hypnagogic\_Jerk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypnagogic_Jerk)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2008, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-major-western-nation-is-next-in-line-for-a-first-minority-prez-pm/471412/37 "2008-11-07T16:23:56Z")
> [@The\_Flying\_Dutchman](#): > > The prime minister in this country more often than not has been elected from an ethnic minority that now comprises 21% of the population. We’ve done that since Laurier. > > Rarely today do we talk about French Canadians as a minority, but they fit the definition of a minority that most of the rest of the world would understand. Constituent peoples of multinational countries are usually not considered “minorities”. No one’s surprised that, for example, Belgium has had French- and Flemish-speaking prime ministers. Even a country like the Soviet Union, while it was dominated by Russians, had a fair number of prominent politicians from its other constituent nations. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2008, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-major-western-nation-is-next-in-line-for-a-first-minority-prez-pm/471412/38 "2008-11-07T23:27:58Z")
> [@Noone\_Special](#): > > More seriously, we’ve had a woman PM, have a strong female contender for the upcoming elections, and aren’t **too** far off from electing a “_Sephardi_” (think sorta kinda like “hispanic” in US-speak) someday fairly soon. Wait. I thought Israel was heavily Sephardic. Are you telling me the heads of government have all been Ashkenazim? ---
**Author:** ![Noone\_Special](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/noone_special/32/2863_2.png) [@Noone\_Special](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Noone_Special)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2008, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-major-western-nation-is-next-in-line-for-a-first-minority-prez-pm/471412/39 "2008-11-07T23:32:54Z")
> [@foolsguinea](#): > > Wait. I thought Israel was heavily Sephardic. Are you telling me the heads of government have all been Ashkenazim? Yes, all the PM’s have been _Ashkenazi_. We’ve had, I believe, two \*Sephardi \*presidents – (Yitzhak Navon, and lately the less-than-illustrious Moshe Katzav) but the President, while officially the “Head of State,” is mostly a ceremonial role, here, sort of like the Constitutional Monarchs in Western Europe (and, fittingly, is elected by Parliament and not directly by the citizenry.) ---
**Author:** ![SomeBodyUK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@SomeBodyUK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SomeBodyUK)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2008, 9:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-major-western-nation-is-next-in-line-for-a-first-minority-prez-pm/471412/40 "2008-11-08T09:55:29Z")
[Lord Liverpool](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Jenkinson,_2nd_Earl_of_Liverpool), PM of Great Britain 1812-1827 was of Anglo-Indian descent [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-major-western-nation-is-next-in-line-for-a-first-minority-prez-pm/471412.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-major-western-nation-is-next-in-line-for-a-first-minority-prez-pm/471412.md?page=3)