Next year our nation will have not two, but three influential new leaders. While two will attain their new positions of power by the voice of the people, the third will get the job based simply on marital connections. 

They’re not elected. They’re not paid. There’s no precise job description.

But whether it’s an elegantly dressed Jacqueline Kennedy giving Americans a tour of the White House, Eleanor Roosevelt speaking on civil rights or Hillary Clinton saying “I suppose I could have stayed home and baked cookies,” first ladies are praised, criticized, adored and scorned — but never ignored.

And these leading ladies wield tremendous power in how the world judges their husbands. What impact have Cindy McCain and Michelle Obama had on their husbands’ campaigns thus far–positive, negative, neutral? And who do you think would make the better first lady?