Roy Morgan asked Australians aged 14 and over to write down the names of three public figures you most admire.

Roy Morgan Research CEO Michele Levine said the company carried out the poll as part of its product poll.

“Roy Morgan Research asks Australians to name three public figures they admire the most. Last year revealed some fascinating, sometimes surprising results — one of which is the enduring popularity of former PM John Howard, some six years after he was voted out,'' she said.

“What’s more, despite the fact that State MPs and Federal MPs are among the least trusted professions in Australia, politicians are widely admired by Australians of all ages, with 64.7% naming at least one. Tellingly, although last year’s key players (Gillard, Abbott, Turnbull, Rudd) all made the Top 10, Barack Obama and Nelson Mandela generally out-ranked them.

“But one has to wonder: are politicians so widely admired simply because they’re so omnipresent and unavoidable in Australian public life, compared to other ‘quieter achievers’? 

“At any rate, these findings dispute the cliché that Australians revere sporting heroes above all others. The most admired sportsperson, cricketer Michael Clarke, staggered in at 52nd.''

The poll found US President Barack Obama was named by 12.7 per cent of Australians aged 14+ as one of the public figures they most admire.

''In fact, of the five people whose names came up most often, only two were Australian: former Prime Ministers Julia Gillard (12.3%) and John Howard (7.7%). Nelson Mandela and the Queen also made the top five,'' the company said in a statement.

The top 10 in the most admired poll were:

(Total Australians who name him/her as most admired)

1: Barack Obama. 12.7 per cent vote. 

2: Julia Gillard 12.3 per cent.

3: Nelson Mandela 10.9 per cent. 

4: John Howard 7.7 per cent.

5: The Queen 7.4 per cent. 

6: Tony Abbott 6.9 per cent.

7: Kevin Rudd 6.8 per cent.

8: Quentin Bryce 6.4 per cent.

9: Malcolm Turnbull 4.2 per cent.

10: Dick Smith 4.0 per cent.

Roy Morgan said there was an even gender split among President Obama's admirers.

''There was a fairly even gender split among President Obama’s admirers, with 48.6% being women and 51.4% being men. Among former South African President Nelson Mandela’s admirers, the female-male breakdown was similarly close (54.4% women; 45.6% men).

''In contrast, women named Julia Gillard and the Queen almost twice as often as men did, while men were far more likely than women to name former PM John Howard as one of their most admired public figures.

''Further down the list, but still among Australia’s 10 most admired public figures, current PM Tony Abbott was more than twice as popular among men as women, and former Governor General Quentin Bryce was named by more than twice as many women as men.''

Roy Morgan said the poll showed a 'generation gap' in action.

''Of course, a person’s age influences the type of public figure they most admire. Generations Y and Z are far more likely to admire President Obama than Pre-Boomers, for example. Tony Abbott’s admirers, meanwhile, are dramatically more likely to be from the Pre-Boomer generation, as are those who named the Queen,'' the statement said.