Politics. Everyone’s favourite dinner-party conversation starter! From adultery and questionable policies to secret gun deals and the loss of nuclear codes, scandal and controversy have always followed America’s leaders. But our team were wondering what with all the controversy over the years, how smart can these politicians really be? We took a step back from the current media circus surrounding the White House to ponder the IQs of American politicians. You’d think that to lead one of the most powerful nations in the world would require a genius of Einstein’s calibre. But heck, if Arnold Schwarzenegger (yes, that’s right, THE Austrian Oak) can run and win an election on the West Coast (we love you Governator!), then it seems maybe you or I should start polishing up the old résumé.
But before you pull out your favourite pair of golfing trousers, or board Air Force One, remember; this is not a job for the average Joe. This then brings us to a comprehensive list of the IQs of the most powerful individuals of the free world. The celebrated, the disenchanted, the entertaining, the foolish, the scandalous, and the downright dastardly Presidents of the United States of America. To refresh your memories, a person’s IQ or Intellectual Quotient is a spectrum which measures an individual’s intellect, testing, in short, their capacity to learn. With the average American hovering between 85 and 115 according to Verywell Mind, and the average president IQ sitting at 140, these great people are still leaps and bounds ahead of the median intellect. Let’s take a look.
1. Ulysses S. Grant (No. 18) – IQ 130
Now, before we’re so quick to judge, remember that the average IQ lies between 85 and 115, so possessing an IQ of 130 is not too low. A shoddily covered-up Whiskey Ring incident saw his crack team of officials attempt to keep tax revenue to themselves and bribe officials, which makes us think maybe he wasn’t the best judge of character, despite his above average IQ.
But this guy was also the 18th President of the United States of America, and a commander of the Union army during the American Civil War! We’ll let you decide if the theoretically least intelligent of the bunch truly belongs here.
