Mark Astarita has taken the top spot in this year’s Fundraising Most Influential poll.

One voter said of Astarita, who is director of fundraising at the British Red Cross and chair of the Institute of fundraising, that: “With a passion for fundraising, the balls to talk out, and as chair of the Institute, Mark is definitely the most influential person in fundraising at the moment.”

Last year’s number one Ken Burnett was voted into second place and there were 15 new entrants, including Peter Lewis, the new chief executive of the IoF. 

It was a record year for women, with four making the top ten and 16 in the top 50, but still half the number of men that feature in the poll.

To see a summary of the results click here.

For the full league table and analysis click here (paywall content).

And to read Celina Ribeiro’s blog comparing fundraisers to superheroes click here.