@Lakakalo - I would hope that Bangladesh is the exception, not the rule.  Although a 1992 book titled "Women as National Leaders" by Michael A. Genovese looked at a half-dozen case studies and found that, by an large, the women did not exercise political power differently than men.  Perhaps national leadership is a less effective position to measure than, say, state and local roles?  This study identifies significant differences between how male and female city managers in terms of policies, leadership styles, and priorities, arguing that females encouraged more citizen involvement and facilitated more communication.  I would suspect that would lead to better results.

@Ikwa - Thanks for the recommendation.  Yes, I can't imagine women leaders leading us into as many wards.

@everyday_yogi - Amen.

@CurryPuffy - @The_Eyes_Of_A_Painter - I can understand the hesitance some people had with Hillary Clinton, not wanting yet another dynasty, but it does seem like the US is quite far behind other nations in the matter of female leadership.  Women make up 16.8% of our Representatives and 17% of our Senators.

@ClimbUpTreesToLookForFish - Didn't know that.  Interesting.

@murisopsis - Good point about the daughters of presidents.  I think one challenge that women would have as national leaders of larger, more powerful countries would be the pressure to conform to pressures of the predominately male power structure - the military, other politicians, etc.

If you look at what happened in the Philippines over this past decade, you'll realize that it's not a question of man or woman, it's a question of person. It's a question of people, of the populace.

We have some obvious political examples in our society. Hillary Clinton - Pro War(including "All options of the table with Iran."), Sarah Palin - Pro War, Michelle Bachman - Pro-War. As a matter of fact i can't tell the difference between any of their views and the views of their counterparts.

Lastly, i wouldn't doubt, either, if the women selected above were not all they are cracked up to be. Remember, Obama got a Nobel peace price and all we've done is expand the war sinse he became President. Many tyrants, actually, have recieved the award, if you look it up. The problem is not that we need a man or woman, it's that we need a populace who really cares about more then themselves, more often.

Now, that being said, i do find it unjust that there are so few women in political positions in America, but women do make up 51% of the voting population. So you have to ask yourself why? We all have improvements to make.

@Zissu25 - @jaydedheart - Thank you for your thoughtful comments.  Fair enough points and as I wrote in my very first line, I'm wary of generalizations.  While research on national leaders doesn't show any particular difference between male and female politicians (over the last 200 years have there been enough women as national leaders to really draw conclusions?), studies looking at more local levels of politicians and leadership do find a difference.  

At the end of the day, (as I wrote) all things being equal, I would trust a female politician more than a male politician to make choices that were better for the health, education, and nutrition of the population.  But, then, there would never be a situation in real life where two candidates would be otherwise completely equal and their gender would be the only differentiator.

@Dezinerdreams - Thanks for your comments.  Considering how few women make it to power in male-dominated politics, it is no wonder that they either are inherently strong/tough/masculine types or at least fashion themselves to be perceived like that.  Otherwise, there is little chance they will survive the fight.  Perhaps a new generation of female leaders, such as Mary McAlesee (Ireland), Tarja Halonen (Finland), Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf (Liberia), Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir (Iceland), and Laura Chinchilla Miranda (Costa Rica) will see this need to "prove you are tough enough" begin to change.

@an_OM_aly - Thanks for your comments.  Yes, it really does depend on the individual and Elizabeth Warren has also caught my eye as someone who seems to have her focus on the right things.  Thanks, too, for the "virtual rec".