Asif Ali Zardari
A shrewd political survivor who rose from a controversial past to become Pakistan's president, navigating a turbulent era after his wife Benazir Bhutto's assassination.
Born 1955 (age 71)·President of Pakistan (2008–2013; since 2024)·Birthday: July 26·Baby Boomers
Biography
Asif Ali Zardari's path to the presidency of Pakistan is a story of resilience, shrewd deal-making, and profound personal tragedy. Long labeled 'Mr. Ten Percent' for corruption allegations during his wife Benazir Bhutto's premierships, he endured over a decade in prison without conviction. His political identity was inextricably linked to Bhutto, and her assassination in 2007 catapulted him to the forefront of the Pakistan People's Party. Against all expectations, he led the party to victory and became President in 2008. His term was defined by a contentious power-sharing dynamic, a landmark shift of presidential powers back to parliament, and persistent economic and security crises. After a constitutional hiatus, he returned to the presidency in 2024, demonstrating an enduring, if polarizing, grip on the country's political landscape, forever a symbol of the Bhutto dynasty's complicated legacy.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Asif was born in 1955, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Asif Was Born
The biggest hits of 1955
#1 Movie
Lady and the Tramp
Best Picture
Marty
#1 TV Show
The $64,000 Question
Asif's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1955Born
Rosa Parks refuses to give up her bus seat
Gas: $0.29/galHome: $9,550Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Rock Around the Clock" — Bill Haley & His CometsBest Picture: Marty
1960Started school
Kennedy-Nixon debates become first televised presidential debates
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $11,900Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Theme from A Summer Place" — Percy FaithBest Picture: The Apartment
1968Became a teenager
Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy assassinated
Gas: $0.34/galHome: $14,950Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"Hey Jude" — The BeatlesBest Picture: Oliver!
1971Could drive
Voting age lowered to 18 in the US
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $18,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Joy to the World" — Three Dog NightBest Picture: The French Connection
1973Could vote
US withdraws from Vietnam; Roe v. Wade decided
Gas: $0.39/galHome: $22,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" — Tony Orlando & DawnBest Picture: The Sting
1976Turned 21
Apple Computer founded; US bicentennial
Gas: $0.59/galHome: $29,300Min wage: $2.30/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Silly Love Songs" — WingsBest Picture: Rocky
1985Turned 30
Live Aid concerts raise money for Ethiopian famine
Gas: $1.12/galHome: $62,900Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Careless Whisper" — Wham!Best Picture: Out of Africa
1995Turned 40
Oklahoma City bombing; Windows 95 released
Gas: $1.15/galHome: $96,500Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Gangsta's Paradise" — CoolioBest Picture: Braveheart
2005Turned 50
Hurricane Katrina devastates New Orleans; YouTube launches
Gas: $2.30/galHome: $167,500Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"We Belong Together" — Mariah CareyBest Picture: Crash
2015Turned 60
Paris climate agreement; same-sex marriage legalized in the US
Gas: $2.43/galHome: $171,900Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Uptown Funk" — Mark Ronson ft. Bruno MarsBest Picture: Spotlight
2025Turned 70
AI agents go mainstream
Gas: $3.10/galHome: $385,000Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"APT." — Rose & Bruno Mars
2026Age 71 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Served as the 11th President of Pakistan from 2008 to 2013, the first man to complete a full term in that office.
- Steered the 18th Amendment to the Constitution in 2010, which restored parliamentary sovereignty and reversed presidential powers accrued during military rules.
- Led the Pakistan People's Party to electoral victory in 2008 following the assassination of his wife, Benazir Bhutto.
- Became the first Pakistani head of state to be born after the country's independence in 1947.
Did You Know?
He is an avid polo player and owned a polo team.
Zardari spent over eleven years in prison on various corruption and murder charges, though he was never convicted.
He reportedly negotiated his release from prison in 2004 by allegedly helping secure information about Osama bin Laden's family.
His son, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, is the current chairman of the Pakistan People's Party.
“Democracy is the best revenge.”
