TIME's Person of the Year Shortlist: 8 Candidates Named

December 8, 2014 2:09 PM EST

TIME’s editors named eight final candidates for the 2014 Person of the Year on Monday.

TIME managing editor Nancy Gibbs revealed the shortlist on NBC’s Today show. Here are the eight still in the final running, in no particular order:

The Ferguson protesters, who took to the streets in August following the fatal shooting of an unarmed black 18-year-old by a white police officer, and again in November when a grand jury declined to indict the officer in the killing.

The Ebola caregivers, who are still fighting the biggest Ebola outbreak in history, that has so far taken the lives of nearly 7,000 people in West Africa.

Vladimir Putin, the Russian president who has remained in the headlines throughout this year, from his country’s stewardship of the Winter Olympics in Sochi to its annexation of Crimea, and its role in the ongoing civil strife in eastern Ukraine.

Taylor Swift, one of the world’s top-selling pop artists, who this year shook up the music industry by pulling her music from streaming service Spotify, which she believes should compensate artists more.

Jack Ma, an English teacher turned founder and CEO of Alibaba, the Chinese e-commerce giant which debuted a $25 billion IPO.

Tim Cook, who introduced Apple’s iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, Apple Watch, and Apple Pay this year, and whose decision to come out made him the first openly gay Fortune 500 CEO.

Masoud Barzani, the acting president of the Iraqi Kurdish Region since 2005, who has deftly threaded the region’s push for independence with the ongoing fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria.

Roger Goodell, the National Football League commissioner whose leadership has been under great scrutiny this year as the league dealt with public incidents of domestic abuse by players such as Ray Rice, among other controversies.

MORE: Everything You Wanted to Know About TIME’s Person of the Year

Gibbs will unveil TIME’s Person of the Year on Today on Wednesday morning, when it will also be shared on Twitter and Facebook. Readers have already made their choice, picking Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi as their favored candidate in TIME’s online poll.

See Every Person Of The Year Cover Ever

TIM211227-MainPOYCoverFINAL — Photograph by Mark Mahaney for TIME

time-person-of-the-year-joe-biden-kamala-harris-2020-cover-1 — Portrait by Jason Seiler for TIME

Greta Thunberg Time Person of the Year Cover — Photograph by Evgenia Arbugaeva for TIME

poy-guardians-grid-new — 2018: The GuardiansPhotographs by Moises Saman-Magnum Photos for TIME

person-of-year-2017-time-magazine-cover — TIME Person of the Year 2017: The Silence BreakersBilly & Hells for TIME

2016: Donald Trump person of the year — 2016: Donald TrumpTIME

TIME person of the year angela merkel 2015 — 2015: Angela MerkelTIME

TIME Person of the Year 2014 Magazine Cover: The Ebola Fighters 141222 — 2014: The Ebola FightersTIME

2012: Barack Obama — 2012: President Barack ObamaTIME

time-person-of-the-year-83 — 2009: Ben Bernanke TIME

2008: Barack Obama — 2008: President Barack ObamaTIME

time-person-of-the-year-80 — 2006: YouTIME

2005: The Good Samaritans: Bill Gates, Bono, Melinda GatesTIME

2002: The Whistleblowers: Cynthia Cooper, Coleen Rowley and Sherron Watkins TIME

1998: Kenneth Starr ad Bill Clinton — 1998: Kenneth Starr and Bill ClintonTIME

time-person-of-the-year-70 — 1996: Dr. David HoTIME

time-person-of-the-year-69 — 1995: Newt GingrichTIME

time-person-of-the-year-67 — 1993: The Peacemakers: Yitzhak Rabin, Nelson Mandela, F.W. De Klerk, Yasser ArafatTIME

TIME COVERS - THE 90'S — 1992: President Bill ClintonTIME

time-person-of-the-year-64 — 1990: President George H.W. BushTIME

time-person-of-the-year-62 — 1988: Endangered EarthTIME

1983: President Ronald Reagan and Yuri AndropovTIME

time-person-of-the-year-56 — 1982: The ComputerTIME

time-person-of-the-year-50 — 1976: President Jimmy CarterTIME

time-person-of-the-year-48 — 1974: King FaisalTIME

1972: President Richard Nixon and Henry KissingerTIME

1968: The Apollo 8 astronauts — 1968: The Apollo 8 AstronautsTIME

time-person-of-the-year-40 — 1966: Men and Women 25 and UnderTIME

1959: President Dwight D. EisenhowerTIME

time-person-of-the-year-30 — 1956: The Hungarian Freedom FighterTIME

time-person-of-the-year-21 — 1947: George MarshallTIME

1941: President Franklin D. RooseveltTIME

1937: Chiang Kai-shek and Soong May-lingTIME

1934: President Franklin D. RooseveltTIME

TIME Man of the Year 1927: Charles Lindbergh — 1927: Charles LindberghTIME

TIME Unveils Finalists for 2014 Person of the Year

See Every Person Of The Year Cover Ever

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