In recent years, the rise of women as major players in American politics has changed the political landscape. Although women represent more than fifty percent of the nation's population, as of 2011 women represent just over twenty percent of the nation's state legislators and sixteen percent of members of the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate. This number is essentially unchanged from the percentage of women who held positions in these public offices in 1993 ( Halloran, 2010 ). While the number of women represented seems dismal, great progress has been made in women's ability to have a major impact on national politics. Three women; Hillary Clinton, Sarah Palin and Nancy Pelosi; have exploded into the national political spotlight and paved the way for women to be considered serious contenders for powerful political positions in the United States. Despite the political and ideological differences these three women share with each other, Clinton, Palin, and Pelosi share one characteristic that has helped launch them into positions of power and political influence: They have all worked hard to get to the top by being lifelong visionaries . .Vision is defined in many different ways. Conger (1999) defined vision as an idealized goal to be achieved in the future. Boal and Bryson (1999) defined vision as an image of the future that articulates followers' values, purposes, and identity. Klenke (2011) argued that vision is the future time perspective that guides leaders' current behaviors (p. 83). Clinton, Palin, and Pelosi were visionaries in their rise to political prominence by being motivated, confident, and influential to the American public. Clinton may well be considered an archetype of women in... middle of the paper. .....did-hillary-clinton's-historic-run-really-break-the-glass-ceiling?PageNr=3Klenke, K. (2011). Organizations in the context of female leadership. Bingley, UK: Emerald Group Publishing Limited. Lexington, M. (2006, November 2). Madam speaker? The economist. Retrieved from http://www.economist.com/node/8108149Newport, F. (2008, March 26). If McCain versus Obama, 28% of Clinton supporters would go for McCain. Gallup. Retrieved from http://www.gallup.com/poll/105691/mccain-vs-obama-28-clinton-backers-mccain.aspxNew York Times. (2011, September 1). Sara Palin. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/p/sarah_palin/index.htmlOrr, J. (2009, February 27). Poll: Palin GOP favorite in 2012. Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved from http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/The-Vote/2009/0227/poll-palin-gop-favorite-in-2012