Summary
For Margaret Thatcher, it was handbags. For Theresa May, it's shoes.
The Sun tabloid greeted May's victory in Britain's Conservative leadership race with a front-page image of her leopard-print shoes and the headline "Heel, boys".
May is hardly the only female politician to draw comment for her outfits – think of Hillary Clinton's previous fondness for trouser suits or Merkel's array of brightly colored blazers.
Its editorial cartoon showed May clobbering opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn with a Thatcher-esque black handbag.
The Thatcher effect is not limited to the U.K. Both Merkel and U.S. Democrat presidential contender Clinton have been called an "Iron Lady," Thatcher's nickname.
The ascent of forceful politicians like Merkel and May shows women can sometimes smash the glass ceiling to a country's highest office.
Rosie Campbell, a Birkbeck professor who studies gender and politics, said May is one of a number of female politicians who have used their clothing cleverly, to send subtle signals of authority.
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