Age: 52
Occupation: Consumer Financial Protection Bureau director
A former Ohio attorney general, Cordray heads the new federal agency tasked with policing consumer products like mortgages and credit cards. As the most widely publicized — and comprehensible — element of the Democrats' 2010 overhaul of financial regulations, the CFPB remains a popular political football. To get around Republican opposition, President Obama recess-appointed Cordray in January, and GOPers in Congress continue to fret as the bureau redesigns mortgage contracts and regulates payday lenders.