TIME magazine’s Top 10 finalists for Person of the year

Updated Dec. 11, 2024, 8:32 a.m. | By East Coast Breakfast

TIME Magazine has officially revealed their list of finalists for person of the year in 2024.

TIME Magazine’s annual list of the top 10 people of the year is out. The top ten finalists are chosen from a wide range of industries of people who’ve made a significant impact on culture, politics and society as a whole.

This year’s list is a major shift from the previous years as it's dominated mainly by politicians and tech giants.

In 2023, TIME named Taylor Swift as Person of the Year; with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky taking the title in 2021, and the world’s richest man, Elon Musk, coming out supreme in 2021.

The ten finalists for 2024 are as follows:

Kamala Harris
The U.S. Vice President gained prominence for her leadership on domestic and global issues, solidifying her role as a key figure in the Biden administration.

Kate Middleton
The Princess of Wales expanded her charitable initiatives and elevated the monarchy’s public image with a modern touch. In less exciting news, Kate shared with the world her battle with cancer, and successfully overcame it.

Elon Musk
Besides being the richest man alive, Elon continued to dominate innovation with advancements in AI, space exploration, and electric vehicles, solidifying his global influence. His company, SpaceX, achieved major milestones in spacecraft engineering by successfully catching one of its rockets as it returned to Earth. Moreover, he took on a significant position in Donald Trump's political campaign.

Yulia Navalnaya
Since losing her husband in February, Yulia has championed human rights and opposition to authoritarianism, advocating for her then-husband, Alexei Navalny.

Benjamin Netanyahu
Despite being a controversial figure, the Israeli Prime Minister navigated geopolitical tensions and domestic challenges while remaining a divisive and significant leader.

Jerome Powell
As U.S. Federal Reserve Chair, Jerome guided critical economic policies during a turbulent financial year, focusing mainly on inflation and stability.

Joe Rogan
The podcaster and media personality shaped cultural conversations, with his platform influencing diverse global audiences. The Joe Rogan Experience was also named Spotify's most-streamed podcast of 2024. Many also believe it was his interview with Donald Trump that led the 45th president to a landslide victory in the 2024 US elections, securing him the 47th presidnecy.

Claudia Sheinbaum
Claudia made history as Mexico’s first female president, ushering in historic political change and a progressive agenda.

Donald J Trump
The 47th U.S. president remained at the forefront of media headlines everywhere with legal battles, his political comeback, his botched assassination attempt and his overall influence in U.S. politics and the Republican Party. He also had a chaotic yet effective political campaign which allowed him to defeat Kamala Harris in the US election.

Mark Zuckerberg
Aside from changing his fashion style and becoming more human, Mark revolutionized the digital landscape with advancements in the metaverse and AI, while maintaining his tech industry dominance.

With the list filled with such influential and prominent figures, it’s difficult to imagine who could take the title this year. Most of these people are deserving of this achievement, but sadly its not up to us.